


Charmed

by kimbora



Category: Dreamcatcher (Korea Band)
Genre: Bodyswap, F/F, Female Friendship, Magic, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-22
Updated: 2019-02-13
Packaged: 2019-05-26 17:26:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 55,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15005774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kimbora/pseuds/kimbora
Summary: "If anyone were to ask how seven witches had managed to come together under the same entertainment company and land in the same girl group, they would be foolish to expect a simple answer. Magical beings rarely encounter any of their kind during their lifetime, let alone multiple people who share the same gift, bear the same burden. The seven members of Dreamcatcher knew that none of them had cast a spell or charm to make this happen, so they could only settle on a more omnipotent magic drawing them to one another. They settled on the magic of fate as their way of explaining what brought them to each other.""This is the story of the seven teenage witches of Dreamcatcher. Read about the magical adventures and mishaps that come with being young witch in a demanding idol lifestyle. Watch these girls cast a spell on your heart as you hear of their love for one another and the shared dream they are chasing together."Basically imagine something similar to Sabrina the Teenage Witch (the TV show not the comic) with Dreamcatcher. Each chapter will be a oneshot surrounding this general theme-some will focus on certain members and others will be OT7.





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! This is my first fic in a LONG time so my apologies if I'm a little rusty. I actually got this idea from reading this (https://archiveofourown.org/works/14028462/chapters/32310687) collection of oneshots. One of them included Suayeon being the way they usually are and getting turned into animals. I thought it was really cute and funny and opened my eyes to the possibility of doing a series based on Dreamcatcher being witches. I decided I would go the more lighthearted route-although someday maybe I can try writing something with a more ~mystical~ concept. Anyways, I hope you enjoy! Mind you, this is just an intro to hopefully clarify what route I am intending to go with future chapters.

If anyone were to ask how seven witches had managed to come together under the same entertainment company and land in the same girl group, they would be foolish to expect a simple answer. Magical beings rarely encounter any of their kind during their lifetime, let alone multiple people who share the same gift, bear the same burden. The seven members of Dreamcatcher knew that none of them had cast a spell or charm to make this happen, so they could only settle on a more omnipotent magic drawing them to one another. They settled on the magic of fate as their way of explaining what brought them to each other. 

From the moment they are born, witches are bestowed their powers. No one is sure how these powers develop or what causes certain people to be chosen for this life as opposed to others. There is no gene attributed to witchery and it seems to crop up randomly across all borders, regardless of family history or background. It is estimated that there are less than one hundred witches currently living in the world. Anyone that falls under the label of “witch” has magic flowing through her veins and is able to conduct and distort this magic as she learns how it interacts with her body. Magic ages with its vessel in the sense that witches become better at controlling their magic as their fine motor skills develop and they are able to control an increasing amount of magic as they grow older. This is fortuitous because many more witches would certainly have been given over to orphanages or left for dead if their caregivers had been frightened of them right from their birth. They had time to earn the trust of their loved ones before these same loved ones began to fear them and treat them with a lukewarm tolerance. Having a witch in the family was devastating for all involved.

Due to the limited amount of potential mentors, witches are usually left fending for themselves in the world. Once they become aware of their powers, they must teach themselves how to keep them under control in order to not be labeled a freak and ostracized from society. Those with powers will slowly see their loved ones interact with them more as they become better at repressing their magic. Until then, they are usually approached with caution or outright ignored. It is a lonely existence, having to learn to hide aspects of one’s self in order to earn shallow approval from people who would never be able to understand you. This is why Dreamcatcher was so lucky to have found each other. They developed a special bond that was sealed by the magic of fate that brought them together.

Jiu, Sua, Yoohyeon, Siyeon, and Dami were the first to meet as trainees, all of them having individual reasons drawing them to Happyface entertainment. The lure of stardom (or the magic of fate) had brought them all to the same company for the same purpose. As a result of having been taught never to reveal their powers, none of them were aware that the rest were in the same situation until one fateful day. Spending that much time together meant someone was bound to slip up and be caught using magic, whether by choice or on accident. None of them turned out to be shocked or appalled by the discovery of a witch in their midst and were quickly able to confide in each other about their powers which brought them closer than ever. The loneliness each girl had endured for so much of her life, the horrid feeling that no one in the world could possibly ever understand her, had come to an end.

Understandably, the five witches were apprehensive when it was announced that two other trainees would be joining them. Handong and Gahyeon were quite shy when they first arrived. Not only did they feel as if they were intruding on an already established dynamic, they too were witches but had not been revealed yet. They were still leading the solitude of having to hide who they were from prying eyes. It did not take long, however, for young Gahyeon to accidentally reveal her powers, a common occurrence in young witches. To ordinary folk, she probably could have played off her mistake, but witches knew how to spot their kind. Gahyeon was met with an outpour of support from the quintet and Handong was relieved to be able to confess that she too was one of their kind. 

If five witches gathered in one place was unbelievable, seven all under the same roof was a downright miracle. The girls could only explain their bond as being woven into fate and thus they vowed to stick together as sisters. They promised to keep their magic a special secret that linked them beyond the shallow perspectives of society. They agreed to focus on lifting Dreamcatcher to new heights so that they may soar above the loneliness, exile, and self hatred they had once faced. They wanted to continue moving forward and chasing their dreams.

This is the story of the seven teenage witches of Dreamcatcher. Read about the magical adventures and mishaps that come with being young witch in a demanding idol lifestyle. Watch these girls cast a spell on your heart as you hear of their love for one another and the shared dream they are chasing together.


	2. Pink Potion Princess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I am here with the first of many oneshots surrounding the "Dreamcatcher are idols but have magic witchy powers" theme! This one centers around our pretty leader Jiu! ❤ I slowly picked away at writing this all week and kept having to come back to it. I hope the ending and everything makes sense. Basically, I wanted to write something that does justice to what a loveable person and sweetheart she is. I have several other chapter ideas in the works about other individual members as well as OT7 and hope to be back again soon. Anyways, please enjoy! P.S.-I have decided on some ideas for ships too hueueue B)

Kim Minji, more commonly known as Jiu, flounced excitedly throughout the kitchen of Dreamcatcher’s shared dormitory. The group’s promotions for their latest album were finally slowing down which meant that she could breathe a bit. Being the leader of the group was a fulfilling job but an exhausting one all the same. Sometimes it felt like her company had designated her as the unofficial babysitter of six rowdy children. Still, despite how exhausting it was, she wouldn’t have changed her life for the world. Nonetheless, she was grateful for the hard-earned free time she could finally enjoy.

The group’s promotion cycle for their latest comeback was finally winding down and most of them savored this newly found freedom by spending it in the dorms. It was the only place they could safely use their powers and all of them were determined to learn new spells and techniques. Jiu had decided that she wanted to try out potion making. Along with magical powers, witches were granted the ability to combine certain ingredients and transfer magic into them to see what the combinations of substances would do. Jiu had never made a potion before and was curious to see what she could come up with. Hence why she was skipping around Dreamcatcher’s kitchen like a giant child, humming to herself as she collected ingredients for her exciting experiment.

Having an affinity for the color pink, Jiu decided that she wanted to use only ingredients of that color. It would make her potion pretty and pink was always associated with pleasant things so it was likely that her potion would do something cute whereas an ugly looking potion would probably give someone a third eye or turn them into a frog or something. Jiu shuddered at the thought. She hoped she was right about the power of pink. She shook her head at herself. What was she doing, doubting the power of her favorite color? She had to live up to her name as Dreamcatcher’s pink princess and trust in the power of its prettiness! She decided to get down to business and stop hogging the kitchen before her members got hungry. The thought of what her members would do to her if she got between them and their food was scarier than any disastrous side effects a potion could produce.

Dreamcatcher’s leader began gathering anything pink she could find in the kitchen. A piece of bubblegum, a pretty flower plucked from the vase on the window sill, and a chunk of watermelon were all sacrificed for her cause. She placed all of her ingredients in a bowl on the counter. Contrary to what pop culture may suggest, witches do not need cauldrons to make potions. They could use dishes like anyone else even if what they were making was far more exciting. Making potions was kind of like witch cooking, Jiu thought with a fond smile.She hummed a song happily as she continued to concoct her pretty pink mixture. She couldn’t help but smile and let out a preemptive squeal of content as she imagined how wonderful it was going to be. She paid no mind to the other members who were running around the dorms carrying out their usual activities. She had declared the kitchen off-limits until she was done. The last thing she needed was anybody messing with her mission, whether on purpose or on accident. Some of the others were too clumsy for their own good. It was a miracle their dormitory had not blown up yet.

Finally, after throwing in some pink himalayan salt she had found buried in the cupboard, Jiu decided that it was time for the next step. Now that she had chosen her ingredients, her next step was to transfer some of her magic into the mixture to activate its abilities. Excitedly waving her arms around, Jiu sent some of her magical aura into the potion. She yelled out in delight as she watched it come to life and release a pink fog that smelled delightfully sweet. Jiu wafted the fog towards her with her hands, closing her eyes and breathing contentedly. She couldn’t wait to sample her beautiful creation! She stopped for a second, scrunching her face in thought. Some potions could be ingested, others were meant for exterior wear like a perfume. She figured that with how sweet this stuff smelled, it would be a waste not to try it on. Grinning, she used her magic to splash a generous amount of the liquid on herself. She waited for anything to take effect. After several minutes of nothing happening, she frowned and readied herself to grab a spoon to eat it with. Before she could do that, however, the sound of pots and pans crashing caught her attention.

It was Siyeon. She had apparently come racing over from her room and some of their cookware had been caught in the crossfire of her high speed. Jiu blinked in surprise, gawking at their main vocalist who was sprawled on the floor in a pile of their kitchen utensils. Siyeon smiled sheepishly up at her. The apologetic expression was quickly replaced by an odd, doe-eyed one. Siyeon was staring at her with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth. It reminded her of the way she looked whenever she saw her favorite foods.

“Uh, Siyeon, are you okay? I thought I told you to stay out of the kitchen until I was done,” the leader pointed out with a slight frown. She was more concerned about the girl’s behavior, which was bizarre even compared to her usual self.

“Sorry, I thought I smelled something really good. It must just be you,” Siyeon explained, adding the last part as she got up and made her way to the leader. She leaned in and sniffed the girl, nodding her head furiously in confirmation that Jiu smelled delightful.

The leader blinked in surprise. Is that all the potion did? Make her smell good and cause people to flock to her? If so, where were the others then?

“Back off, wolf girl! Jiu is mine!” a new voice angrily declared.

Sua stormed into the room and pried Siyeon off of their leader. Jiu could only gawk at the shorter girl who looked ready to knock Siyeon’s head into the cabinet. She softly tried to intervene but the two were loudly arguing over her. She was baffled. They were both acting even weirder than usual. Was this because of the potion? Before Sua and Siyeon could instigate an all-out brawl on the kitchen floor, Yoohyeon crept into the room and swept Jiu off her feet, bridal style. The leader let out a squeak of surprise.

“Don’t worry, I’ll save you from these two clowns,” the younger girl told her in a voice that she presumed was supposed to sound cool.

“How would you be able to save her from clowns when you’re one yourself?” Dami pointed out from the entryway of the kitchen, glaring at her taller counterpart.

“You’re just jealous that you didn’t act quick enough. Now I get our beloved leader all to myself,” Yoohyeon gloated.

“Hey, give her back, you...you tree!” Siyeon yelled indignantly with Sua nodding in agreement.

Jiu could only watch from Yoohyeon’s embrace as Sua and Siyeon began to chase the taller girl who shrieked in surprise and tried to run. Unfortunately, Yoohyeon’s clumsiness combined with her lack of strength caused her to quickly trip and drop Jiu who landed on her bottom on the floor. She whined and rubbed her backside at the sudden pain. Dami could only shake her head while Sua and Siyeon both pointed accusingly at the embarrassed Yoohyeon.

“You dropped her, you monster!” they accused simultaneously.

“How dare you hurt our pink princess! You don’t deserve her! Face my wrath!” Sua added, jumping onto the taller girl’s back and proceeding to attack as Siyeon cheered her on.

Dami took advantage of their brawling to come help their leader up and make sure she was okay. Jiu smiled gratefully at her and patted her head, surprised when the girl blushed and ducked her head to the other side. Jiu screamed when Siyeon came out of nowhere and yanked Dami into the fight. She insisted that her members cut it out before someone got hurt or the kitchen got destroyed but she was ignored. Everyone kept screaming something about who their “beloved leader loves the most” or something. What was going on with everyone today? She could really use Gahyeon and Handong to help be the voices of reason. Thankfully, they decided to show up at that exact moment.

“What is going on in here? I was trying to study and there were all of these weird noises coming from the kitchen. Didn’t Jiu tell everyone to avoid this room until she was done making her potion?” the youngest demanded, scratching her head in a combination of frustration and confusion.

“I had just finished making my potion when everyone started coming in and now they’re all acting weird and fighting! I can’t get them to listen to me. Maybe you guys can help?” Jiu asked, looking at the other two with pleading eyes.

Jiu was shocked when Handong, after looking into her eyes for a bit, wordlessly marched over to the four fighting girls. Her eyes widened while watching the Chinese member easily knock all of them to the ground with one swift move. Handong looked expectantly at the leader, seeming to be seeking her approval. Jiu was at a loss for words as Handong gestured to the four girls, who were now out of commission, and then smiled eagerly at her.

“Uh, thanks, Dongie,” she said unsurely. That seemed to be enough for Handong whose smile expanded, her cheeks rosy.

“No fair, I didn’t get to do anything to help!” Gahyeon whined.

“That’s okay, you’re still my baby,” Jiu cooed, pinching her cheek affectionately.

Gahyeon pouted and covered her face to hide her reddened cheeks.

“I could be more than a baby you know,” she muttered under her breath. 

Gahyeon’s words fell on deaf ears because the four members Handong had knocked to the ground popped back up like jumping beans and resumed the commotion. Jiu could only sigh as all six of her members were dragged into the chaos. It was even noisier than before! Sua was scolding Handong for hitting her elder, Dami had Yoohyeon in a headlock, and Siyeon was pulling Gahyeon’s hair as the youngest whined and told her to stop. Jiu sighed, closing her eyes and placing her fingers on the bridge of her nose. She hated having to yell at her members but they were leaving her no other choice.

“Can you all please stop? I am just trying to enjoy the potion perfume I made myself! Why did you all have to come in here anyways, I said the kitchen was off-limits until I was done with my experiment!” the leader shrieked.

Everyone stared in awe at her uncharacteristic outburst. They were all stunned to silence, their mouths slightly agape. Jiu blushed a bit at their stares but then was hit with a sudden realization. Of course, they had all come in after she put the potion on! Siyeon had commented that she smelled good and the rest of the members had all been summoned into the kitchen shortly after. They were arguing because of the potion!

“I’ve got it! You guys are all fighting because of my potion. I thought it just smelled really good but it makes people fight too. Who knew something so pretty and pink could cause so much harm? That’s it, I’m going to go wash it off right now so you’ll all behave. I’m so sorry for causing you guys trouble!” the leader declared before rushing off to wash off her evil creation that had made her members fight with each other.

Once she had closed the door to the bathroom, the members all exchanged conspiratory glances. Dami and Yoohyeon high fived each other while Siyeon ruffled Gahyeon’s hair in an apologetic fashion. Sua gathered all of the members together for a congratulatory group hug.

“You guys, we totally nailed it! She really thinks it was all the potion’s fault!” the next eldest member gushed with a huge grin.

“I feel kind of bad pranking her like that but at least it gave us an excuse to fight over her without getting reprimanded,” Gahyeon added.

“Speaking of fighting, was it necessary to hit us that hard, Dongie?” Sua demanded with her hands on her hips.

“You’re fine, it was just a simple technique to quiet you all down and make our leader happy. At least I didn’t pull anyone’s hair or put anyone in a headlock,” Handong retorted which caused Siyeon and Dami to look down guiltily.

“I just hope we haven’t turned her off of potion-making. I’m sure whatever she made would have done something cool if we had given it more time to actually take effect,” Dami pointed out.

“I just wish we had made her tell us who she loves the most. She might have felt obligated to answer since she thought this was all her fault,” Yoohyeon observed.

“We’ll try that next time if we haven’t turned her off of making potions forever,” Siyeon chuckled.

The other members voiced their agreement, all of them sporting mischievous expressions. Their poor leader remained oblivious as she furiously tried to scrub all traces of her potion off in the shower. Perhaps it was cruel for the six of them to conspire against their leader like this but it was part of the fun of having such a sweet, naive girl in charge. Not to mention they all enjoyed competing for her prized love and affection. Poor Jiu would always remain oblivious to their secret competition for Dreamcatcher’s beloved princess.


	3. Honey I Shrunk the Members (Into Kids)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! We are back with another chapter. I want to thank everyone who has commented and/or given kudos so far-I appreciate your feedback and support! This chapter centers on my bias, Dreamcatcher's smol queen Sua. <3 This chapter ended up freakishly long because I had so much fun writing it. Honestly, I could write a whole fic dedicated to this concept but I condensed it into one-shot form. As a disclaimer, I am aware that Sua isn't THAT much tinier than everybody else but she is still smol and I really ran with this idea. This turned out really memey and there are some swears-I apologize if that offends anybody. Okay, that's enough from me. Ta-ta for now! :D

Kim Bora, otherwise known as Sua, glared up at her worst enemy, hatred radiating from her entire being. How could anyone be so cruel? She wanted to lunge at the evil being staring down at her, mocking her. The top friggin’ shelf of the pantry. Whose brilliant idea was it to put all of the ingredients she needed up there? She slaved in the kitchen day after day just for these ungrateful brats to put everything in a place that was impossible for her to reach. See, our Sua is what you call “vertically challenged.” She blamed the years of intense dancing. It probably stunted her growth or something. What mattered was that she was tall on the inside. Anyways, she needed to figure out what to do about her present problem.

She let out a sigh as she stared at the promised land, the components of the delicious dinner she was going to make tonight. Siyeon, being the little shit that she is, had suggested buying a stepladder for the kitchen but Sua would sooner die than use one of those things. She settled for the less embarrassing option of trying to scale the wall like Spiderman and grab what she needed herself. That usually worked, except for the times she missed and took everything nearby with her on her descent. Based on the amount of things she needed, she could tell it would be a futile effort to try and climb for everything. She would have to swallow her pride and ask one of the giants to help her.

“Yoohyeon, get your butt in here! The queen requires….assistance,” she hollered with a dramatic pause.

Her roommate arrived shortly. Those freakishly long legs of hers really worked. Yoohyeon ignored Sua’s ridiculous way of referring to herself and focused on the issue at hand.

“What do you need? I was kind of in the middle of something,” Yoohyeon muttered before assessing the situation and grinning. “Oh, you need me to get something from the top shelf, don’t you? Not a problem, heights are my specialty. The great Yoohyeon is happy to come to the rescue of her friends!”

The younger member struck a ridiculous superhero pose before extending one of her arms and grabbing the ingredients Sua pointed out. The shorter of the two crossed her arms and watched bitterly as the other girl grabbed it all with ease. If she had tried to get it all, she would have been in a pile on the floor with a sore butt from falling.

“Was that all you needed? I’m gonna head back to the other room now. Let me know if you have any other short people problems!” Yoohyeon declared, giggling at her joke like a child.

If looks could kill, the one Sua gave her before she left would have turned Dreamcatcher into a six member group. Yoohyeon shrieked and hastened her exit, running away with those long legs of hers before Sua could chase her. The older girl decided the stupid tree wasn’t worth it. She needed to have dinner ready in under an hour or else those ungrateful members of hers would be bugging her nonstop. She would just have to spit in Yoohyeon’s food for revenge.

With another sigh, she got to work. She pouted as she chopped all of the vegetables. Why did she have to be so vertically challenged? It wasn’t fair that people like annoying Yoohyeon could gloat just because they were able to reach the top shelf. Who even put those shelves so high up anyway? Whoever built their pantry was clearly a huge jerk who wanted to torment her. It wasn’t just the stupid pantry either. Her members loved pointing out how small she was on a regular basis. “Look at Sua and her tiny hands!” “Sua, you go in front for the picture-you can sit on my lap!” She gritted her teeth and increased her chopping speed as she remembered the many times her members had to point out how small she was. Those ungrateful brats. She may have been smaller than all of them but she could still kick their sorry butts in a fight.

As she was cooking, a brilliant idea came to her. She was a witch. A witch with magic powers that could make everybody in the group shorter than her, at least temporarily. She could mix a charm into the food! They would eat their words as they ate the delicious dinner she prepared. With an evil grin, she rubbed her hands together and got to work. As the food simmered on the pan, Sua cast a spell that would cause everyone to be smaller than her. Eventually, her beautiful creation was finished. She called everyone to get their food, giddy at the thought of finally getting to experience what it felt like to be the tallest. She couldn’t wait!

~  
“Wow, this is really good! You outdid yourself, Sua!” Jiu complimented as she happily ate her portion.

Sua smiled pleasantly in reply. She knew Jiu’s compliments on her cooking meant very little since the girl would eat anything but it was still sweet of her to say something. She watched as the others enjoyed their meal. Everyone seemed to be happy with what she had made. This was perfect, she had finally cooked something that everyone liked and she would like it most of all. She eagerly waited for the spell to work and to finally experience what it was like to be taller than these dorks.

Dinner was almost over when a poof was heard and a light smoke filled the room. Sua squealed, her spell was taking effect! She waved the vapor away, eager to see how small her members were. She didn’t care how short they were, as long as they were smaller than her. Her jaw dropped when she saw six kids staring at her where her members had been sitting. She blinked and rubbed her eyes to make sure she was seeing correctly. Was she hallucinating? Where did these kids come from? She stared each of them down while they just blinked at her innocently.

The little girl next to her in Jiu’s usual spot looked to be about six years old. She wore a pink dress and a pleasant expression. The girl next to her looked a lot like Siyeon and seemed to be around the same age. The little Siyeon made a wolf noise and Sua groaned because she immediately knew what happened. She continued to look at the girl next to Siyeon who she presumed to be Dami. Little Dami managed to still seem wise beyond her years, a calm expression on her face as she was careful not to get any food on her panda sweater. Doing the math with each member’s age, Sua realized she was probably about three years old. Next to Dami was the little version of Handong who was unfairly pretty even as a kid. Sua was stunned as the little girl flipped her hair like a mini shampoo model. Moving on, next to her was Yoohyeon who was the same age as Dami. She was as tall and thin as ever, a baby tree. Finally, her eyes landed on Gahyeon and she had to stop herself from cursing because there were now children present. Gahyeon could not have been more than one years old, an actual infant.

Dreamcatcher’s queen realized she had royally screwed up. ‘Way to go, Sua, you made them shorter than you but at the price of turning them into kids!’ she thought as she banged her head repeatedly against the table. She had to fix this immediately. How would they perform like this? How would they conduct interviews and fansigns? She knew the spell could only last for a certain amount of time but that could mean anywhere from an hour to who knows how long! She doubted their company, their manager, or their fans would be happy with this. Not to mention the fact that they had been sworn to secrecy about their powers. How was she going to explain that some of her members suddenly weren’t toilet trained anymore?

“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” she yelled at herself as her head repeatedly made contact with the table. A hand on her sleeve prompted her to look up, a red mark on her forehead.

“Um, Miss? You’re giving yourself an owie. Also, stupid is a bad word,” little Jiu informed her in a voice that reminded her of flowers and sunshine.

“But you just said stupid too! You just said a bad word!” Siyeon pointed out obnoxiously, cackling at Jiu who put her hand over her mouth in a dainty expression of horror.

“She was just telling that lady that it’s not a nice word so her stupid doesn’t count, stupid!” Yoohyeon argued, sticking her tongue out at Siyeon who did the same.

“You two are being too loud at the dinner table. That’s bad manners,” Handong huffed, shaking her head at their foolishness.

Dami seemed unbothered and just kept eating her meal. Little Gahyeon watched everyone with wide eyes that seemed to be judging them.

Not only had they been turned into children, their minds seemed to have reverted back to the ages they appeared. This was even worse! Sua realized she was going to have to be a babysitter on top of trying to fix the spell. She groaned, putting her head in her hands on the table.

~  
Sua was currently regretting all of her life decisions that led up to this moment. Once she had come to terms with the fact that her groupmates had been turned into babies, she decided that she had to take responsibility for her actions. Clearly, she had screwed up her spell and she needed to fix it. Until she figured out how to turn everyone back to normal, she would watch the kids and keep this as her little secret. She had no choice but to handle everything on her own since there was no way she could explain this to anyone. This decision to handle everything on her own what really biting her in the ass, though, since now she was watching those six little brats run around the house and terrorize each other. The tiny versions of her members would be cute if they weren’t such little monsters.

Jiu was pretty well behaved but was a complete crybaby. In the span of only an hour, Sua had explained that the fly she killed was in heaven now, consoled the girl when she accidentally dropped her stuffed animal on the floor and acted as if she’d committed a murder, and of course there was the incident when Siyeon had pointed out that she said stupid and Sua had to insist that hers was an accident and did not make her a bad person. She had always known their leader was a cinnamon roll but this was just ridiculous. The child version of Yoohyeon was a total know-it-all and was driving Sua up the wall. She had nitpicked the way Sua washed the dishes and the older girl kept a tally of how often the little shit had corrected her grammar in the past hour. Handong and Dami were better at keeping their sass under wraps. They were pretty well behaved minus the occasional eye roll from Handong and a few savage comebacks from Dami that even Sua had to admit were good. How did these tiny versions of her members have as much sass as their adult selves? Gahyeon was only about one so her words were limited but the infant made up for it by squealing and screaming consistently. The quietest she had been was at the dinner table when she was occupied with food. She had more than made up for her silence in the past hour. Still, despite their faults, these five were relatively easy to handle.

Siyeon, on the other hand, was a total nightmare and was unapologetic about it. Sua really understood why she was called Dreamcatcher’s wolf. The girl behaved like a wild animal! She had gotten so sick of chasing after her that she had put her in Jiu’s pink tub which had officially become the “Time-Out Tub.” She missed the regular version of Siyeon more than anybody else. Her child self had already destroyed five pieces of furniture and made four of the other girls cry (including Sua) all in the span of an hour. Sua was getting ready to kick the girl out and let her live with the wolves if she wanted to be one so much. She had to remind herself of how much she loved the grownup version of Siyeon in order to maintain her patience.

Sua was currently sitting on the floor, consulting a magic book the girls kept handy in case any of them screwed up. Magic users were on their own to come up with and cast spells except for a few ancient staples that every witch was smart to learn. This meant that there were no instructions for a witch to use her magic and she had to rely on trial and error to become proficient at the craft. The book existed to help explain any reasons why a witch may have screwed up and had a result other than the intended effect of her spell or charm. Unfortunately, the book was ridiculously huge and terribly organized. Witches would make terrible librarians. Sua was at her wit’s end trying to flip through the giant mess to find a way to turn everyone back to normal. The six little shits she was now in charge of certainly weren’t helping. Jiu was currently singing some Disney princess song Sua didn’t recognize nor care about as she twirled around. Handong was watching her with judgemental eyes, probably thinking she would make a better princess. Yoohyeon and Siyeon were having some kind of screaming match that they were calling a high note battle. Sua was going to need an aspirin by the time they finished. Dami was the most tolerable but even she was driving Sua nuts with how she was peering over her shoulder. She knew the rapper loved books but how could a three year old expect to be able to read this? Sua wanted to thank her lucky stars for Gahyeon who had finally fallen asleep in her lap. The baby had been incessantly noisy and wiggly but Sua had finally managed to get her to relax. How the youngest was sleeping through this nonsense was beyond her but she was grateful nonetheless. She needed to quiet all of them down so that she could at the very least hear herself think. Maybe then she would be able to fix this mess.

“Okay, that’s it. Bedtime for everybody. Anyone who doesn’t have a blanket and pillow in the next thirty seconds is getting the biggest time-out of their lives and doesn’t get any candy until they’re fifty!” Sua declared, setting the book down.

The current oldest member got up and stood in a menacing fashion with Gahyeon in her arms. Jiu, Handong, Yoohyeon, and Dami immediately raced to gather the comfiest looking sleep accessories they could find. Siyeon just stood there with a smirk on her bratty little face. Sua stared the little girl down, channeling the scariest energy she could muster. She tried to channel their darkest performances to make herself seem as intimidating as possible. It didn’t seem to work since the little girl was still in the same exact spot wearing the same obnoxious expression.

“Siyeon, what are you doing? You’re gonna get in trouble! How can you risk not being able to have candy for a bajillion years?” Yoohyeon questioned from where she and the others were already snuggled up in the blankets and plushies they had found.

Siyeon just shrugged, probably trying to look cool. Sua set Gahyeon down in between Jiu and Handong who had sweetly left a spot for her. She did not want to accidentally wake the baby with the smiting she was about to bring upon that little brat. There was not enough patience in the world to deal with these kids and Sua was already not an exceptionally patient person. She marched towards the main vocalist, mustering the scariest mom face she could possibly create. She had to rely on her own experiences growing up as well as some of her favorite shows as inspiration, but she figured she was pulling it off well. Siyeon seemed to tense a bit when she saw the older girl approaching.

“You don’t scare me. I have the power of God and anime on my side! Sleep is for the weak!” Siyeon cried passionately, raising her fist in the air.

An intense staring contest commenced. Sua glared down at Siyeon while Siyeon narrowed her eyes and remained in her power pose. The other members watched from their cocoon of blankets. Jiu clung to the sleeping Gahyeon as if trying to protect the baby from the intensity of the stares. Handong and Dami stared at the showdown with interested eyes, clearly enjoying the chaos. Yoohyeon held her hands to her face in a dramatic expression of terror. The staredown continued in tense silence, everyone watching with bated breath. To everyone’s surprise, Sua fell to her knees, sobbing dramatically.  
“Please, just go to sleep! I’m begging you! This day has been a nightmare. I seriously screwed up and I’m so sorry. Still, isn’t having to deal with you awful children punishment enough? You people make me want to take an oath of celibacy!” Dreamcatcher’s main dancer wailed as she remained on her knees, tinier than ever.

Siyeon stared at her in dumbfounded silence. The little girl was stunned to see the woman, who had looked so scary just moments ago, lying beneath her on the floor. Jiu, Handong, Dami, and Yoohyeon all looked at each other confusedly while Gahyeon slept soundly. The children could only watch in silence as the only grown up in the room had her temper tantrum.

As Sua continued her blubbering, the room filled with a bright light vanished almost as quickly as it appeared. When Sua looked up to see what had happened, she saw all six of her members back to their normal ages. The now fully grown Siyeon noticed her raised fist and lowered it with a weirded out expression. Jiu, Handong, Dami, and Yoohyeon all looked at each other in confusion and then glanced down at the sleeping Gahyeon. They seemed to have no memory of what had happened. Sua leaped up from the floor with a shriek of delight. Her outburst caused Gahyeon to wake up with a start. The youngest member looked just as disoriented as everybody else.

“Holy crap, you’re all back! I thought I was totally screwed!” Sua gushed joyfully, running to hug each and every one of her members and kiss them on the cheek.

“Uh, what happened? The last thing I remember is eating the dinner you made then all of a sudden I’m here in a pile of blankets with Gahyeon sleeping on me,” Jiu pointed out.

“Wait a minute, did you do something to our dinner?” Dami accused, pointing an angry finger at Sua who smiled sheepishly.

“In my defense, all I wanted to do was make you all shorter than me. How was I supposed to know I’d somehow turn you into kids? You guys certainly didn’t make the situation any easier. All of you spent your whole time as children making my life a living hell. Especially you, Lee Siyeon!” she yelled, turning to glare at Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist.

Siyeon frowned, “Well, you deserved it for turning us into kids, you dummy!” she huffed.

“How did you fix us anyways?” Gahyeon wondered, trying to cut in before Sua and Siyeon started lunging at each other.

Sua scratched her head, “Uh, to be honest, I’m not really sure. You kids made me lose my mind and start sobbing on the floor but then I looked up and you were all back to normal,” she confessed.

Yoohyeon grinned, “I bet everything got fixed because Sua realized that even as kids we are still bigger people than her!” she joked.

Everyone except for Sua burst into laughter at the tallest member’s joke. The remaining members watched in amusement as Sua chased Yoohyeon around the room angrily.

“I just spent the past couple of hours taking care of you, you ungrateful tree! Get back here, I’ll knock you down to size with my fists!” Sua yelled angrily.

Jiu, Siyeon, Handong, Dami, and Gahyeon chuckled as Sua leaped onto Yoohyeon’s back. The taller girl screamed and ran wildly while Sua pelted her with punches, cackling all the while. Dreamcatcher’s second oldest may have turned everyone else into kids, but deep down she was the biggest child of them all.


	4. Sing to Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! This time our chapter centers around Siyeon. I gotta say this chapter made me kinda emo at times and I hated doing this to her. I mean, overall, it's still lighthearted but like this one got a little deep. I'm sorry for doing this to you bby ily :') I was going to try and include a ship in here but I couldn't quite work it in with this chapter. Don't worry though-I will eventually be adding ships. I will keep the ones I plan to include a secret though. ;) Anyways, I hope you all enjoy!

The computer screen cast a dim blue glow over the face of Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist, Lee Siyeon, as she stared intently into it. A mischievous grin blossomed across the girl’s face as she kept her attention on whatever website she was browsing. It was about three in the morning and everyone else was fast asleep in their dormitory. Siyeon had chosen to hang out in the living room to conduct her secret research and was trying to be as quiet as humanly possible. She was thrilled to announce that after many hours spent toiling in front of her computer, she discovered that there was, in fact, a black market website for magic users! Siyeon couldn’t wait to gloat in Dami’s stupid face. The other girl had insisted Siyeon was being ridiculous when she had mentioned the possibility of there being a place to buy magical stuff. Turns out Siyeon was right after all, as she knew she would be. She would choose a special item to order and keep as a trophy. The question was, what should she buy?

She scanned her options, ranging from magical toys that supposedly came to life, to terrifying looking weapons that could be used in some kind of magic warfare. As much as she would love a cool magical hammer to be able to destroy her enemies like Thor, that would not exactly be the most practical option. Her members would probably make her return it anyways. They really were no fun sometimes. Siyeon kept scrolling in the hopes of finding something that her members would probably allow her to keep, but that wasn’t so lame that she would regret spending money on it. Her eyes fell upon a pretty looking necklace that was listed at a pretty reasonable price.She was glad that these black market people were above completely overcharging their customers. This seemed like it would at least complement her wardrobe pretty well. She decided to give the necklace a closer look.

Considering how rare magic users are, Siyeon was surprised that there was enough demand to warrant opening an online market for mystical relics. Then again, maybe some regular folks bought stuff off of this website without realizing that they were being ripped off for regular household items. It’s not like just anybody could activate the abilities these items possessed. They needed someone capable of channeling magic in order to work. Siyeon was just glad that this website existed so that she could buy cool witchy stuff and, more importantly, rub it in Dami’s face that she was right. She decided that the necklace was a good start because her members couldn’t possibly complain about a piece of jewelry. She briefly scanned the description of what the object could do. Apparently, it had some kind of special power involving the voice of the user. The website was a bit vague, but Siyeon was sure it had to do something cool. She was a singer so she had to be interested in what the necklace could do if it involved voices. Maybe it would help her hit a note so high only dogs could hear it! She had always wanted to give that a try. She clicked the button to order the necklace and hurried to enter her payment information. Her necklace would be able to be there tomorrow afternoon! 

‘Wow, magic users should run all of the world’s shipping companies,’ she thought to herself with an impressed nod.  
~  
That afternoon, Siyeon eagerly waited by the door of the group’s dormitory. Everyone had learned not to question her behavior at this point, so they all watched her and said nothing. Finally, after what felt like an eternity of waiting, the neighborhood mail carrier arrived. Siyeon practically tackled the man as she eagerly grabbed the mail from him. She sifted through the pile, most of it letters from fans to various members, until she found what she was looking for. A small package addressed to her specifically. 

‘Huh, for people with such cool powers, witches use pretty simple wrapping to send their mail,’ Siyeon thought as she assessed the small parcel.

“Thanks for bringing the mail in, Siyeon! What did we get today?” Jiu asked, flouncing up to the other girl and looking over her shoulder.

“Oh yeah, there were a few things from fans for all of us. I set them on the table over there,” Siyeon responded halfheartedly, most of her attention focused on the necklace that she was eager to open up and try out.

“Aw, how sweet! Our fans really are the best. What have you got there? A special present from somebody?” Dreamcatcher’s leader continued the conversation in her usual pleasant demeanor.

“Oh no, this isn’t a gift. I ordered it off the internet. I can’t wait to try this baby out!” Siyeon explained with a grin as she began tearing off the brown paper that separated her from her super cool black magic market find.

Jiu smiled and put her arm around Siyeon’s shoulder, “Ah, I see! Looks like our Singnie is joining me and Dongie in the addictive habit of online shopping. What did you buy? Oh, what a pretty necklace! What store did you buy it from?” the girl’s eyes widened in admiration as Siyeon pulled out the jewelry piece and held it up triumphantly.

Siyeon shrugged, “Oh, you know, I just got it off some black market website for magical items. Anyways, I’m gonna go give it a try. See you later!” the girl hurried off, leaving the other girl with a stunned expression.  
~  
Siyeon made it into her bedroom and locked the door. It seemed that Jiu knew better than to follow her. She was not a fan of people trying to reason with her. She preferred doing her thing and dealing with the potential consequences later. Besides, all the necklace was going to do was make her voice sound super cool and help her become a stronger main vocalist. She couldn’t contain her excitement! She looked and saw Dami was lying on her bed reading a book. Siyeon’s smile widened. Now she could test out the necklace and gloat in her stupid roommate’s face that she was right! It was like killing two birds with one stone!

“What are you grinning like an idiot for?” Dami questioned, judging Siyeon with her eyes.

“Oh, you know, just getting ready to try on my new necklace here,” Siyeon explained, waving the object in the girl’s face, much to her annoyance.

“That’s nice. You’re shoving it in my face obnoxiously for what reason exactly?” Dreamcatcher’s main rapper griped.

Siyeon smirked and held the necklace over her head. She struck a triumphant pose which prompted Dami to roll her eyes and look at her expectantly.

“Well, my dear roommate, the reason I am so tickled by this seemingly simple piece of jewelry is that it has magic abilities. Do you perchance know where people buy things with magic abilities?” the main vocal prompted, eagerly waiting for her words to register with the other girl.

Dami’s eyes widened as it dawned on her. Her gaze fell to the necklace and then back to Siyeon.

“You found that at a black market for witches. They actually exist,” she groaned as the realization dawned on her.

Siyeon nodded before proceeding to do an “I was right and you were wrong” victory dance around the room. Dami fell back against her bed in despair. She couldn’t believe this giant child had been right and she was wrong. It was a rare occurrence but a hard pill to swallow nonetheless. Still, Siyeon just said it was magical but hadn’t proved anything. She still had a chance to save face. Dami stood up and folded her arms across her chest.

“Well, let’s see what this dumb necklace does. If you can prove that it’s actually magical, then you win. Otherwise, you just got scammed out of a few bucks and it turns out that I’m right after all,” she challenged.

“Fine, you’re on! Let’s see what this baby does. I can’t wait to give it a try and watch you eat your words!” Siyeon agreed, putting the necklace on.

The minute the necklace was on, an amber glow filled the room. Dami watched with wide eyes as a golden vortex erupted from the object and circled around Siyeon. It looked like the girl was being wrapped in a golden cyclone of light. As this happened, Siyeon glanced around excitedly at the magical aura surrounding her. Getting to see Dami’s reaction was the most satisfying part. She could tell the rapper had finally admitted defeat. At this point, the necklace could be incredibly lame and she would still be pleased. The magical lights around Siyeon brightened for a moment before evaporating and returning the room to its original lighting. Dami blinked owlishly as her eyes adjusted to the light, while Siyeon stood there smirking.

“Okay, fine, you were right. That necklace definitely has magic abilities and since you bought it off some shady market that proves that there is, in fact, a black magic market for witches. It sucks to admit it, but I was wrong. Anyways, what did that necklace of yours do? I’m assuming there’s more to it than the light show we just saw,” Dami remarked.  
Siyeon opened her mouth to reply and test out her voice, but no sound came out. She blinked, confused. She had definitely formed the words in her head and urged her vocal cords to make the sounds. Maybe she had a sore throat? She noticed a glass of water next to Dami’s bed and took a swig, much to the other girl’s disgust. She tried to speak again only to be met with a hoarse gasp of air once again. She was beginning to panic now. What the hell was wrong with her voice? Had the necklace made it invisible to her ears? It seemed like Dami hadn’t heard her say anything either. Her roommate’s expression was beginning to grow concerned.

“Siyeon, what gives? Aren’t you going to tell me what the necklace did? This isn’t funny!” Dami demanded.

Siyeon desperately tried to reply to the other girl’s words but her vocal cords weren’t cooperating. She was beginning to panic, tears filling her eyes. What was going on? She wanted to speak and was trying so hard to make the sounds come out, but each attempt resulted in silent gasps of air. Dami could see how scared the older girl was and tried to assess the situation as calmly as possible. It was clear to her that the necklace had probably caused this. It reminded her of that scene in The Little Mermaid when Ursula stole Ariel’s voice. Who knew a Disney movie could accurately represent their situation at the moment? Dami shook her head and returned her focus to Siyeon who was coming to the same realization. The main vocal frantically pointed at the necklace and Dami nodded.

“It’s okay, Singnie, I can see what’s going on too. The necklace must have done this. Why don’t you try taking it off and see what happens?” she suggested.

Siyeon nodded and took off the piece of jewelry. She once again tried to speak, but was met with the same hoarse gasping noises. Siyeon frowned and put the necklace on once again. There were no lights this time and she still was unable to produce any sound. Dami groaned. What were they going to do? Siyeon was their main vocal, for crying out loud! What was she going to do without her voice? There had to be a way to fix this. Why did she have to go and order that stupid necklace just so she could gloat? That decision certainly seemed to be biting her in the ass. Was being right really worth it? Dami could see tears in the other girl’s eyes and realized that none of that mattered right now. What was more important was helping her get her voice back. Dreamcatcher’s main rapper let out a tired sigh. They would need all hands on deck for this situation.

“Come on, let’s go get the others so we can put our heads together and figure out what to do about this. In the meantime, use this to talk,” Dami declared, grabbing Siyeon’s hands and giving her a notebook and pen from her desk.  
~  
Yoohyeon was in the midst of an intense game on her computer when Dami and Siyeon burst into the room. Siyeon looked like she was crying and was clutching onto one of Dami’s journals. Dami looked like she was ready to kill someone. Naturally, Dreamcatcher’s resident gamer had some questions.

“What’s going on? Are you guys okay?” Yoohyeon asked gently, casting a worried look at Siyeon who seemed quite upset.

“Yoohyeon, I am gonna need you to hop on a website for me. The sooner the better,” Dami muttered, basically ignoring the other girl’s question.

Siyeon scribbled down a URL onto a page of the notebook she was carrying. She flipped the page when she was finished so that Yoohyeon could see the website she had written down. Yoohyeon was confused to say the least, but saved her game and closed out. She opened a new browser window and quickly typed in the website she had been given. While she waited for the page to load, she looked at the duo, clearly expecting some kind of explanation.

“Siyeon ordered a necklace from an online black market for witches. It took her voice and we have no idea how to fix it at the moment,” Dami answered before Yoohyeon even had to ask.

Dreamcatcher’s tallest member gasped and looked at Siyeon worriedly. The other girl just smiled sheepishly and nodded to corroborate Dami’s explanation. Yoohyeon had a feeling they were telling the truth since it was rare that Dami would ever prank anyone and Siyeon was known to do things that ended in disaster. Yoohyeon shuddered as she remembered some of the girl’s past screwups. Still, this one was promising to be especially disastrous. What were they going to do without their main vocal?

“Don’t worry, we’ll fix this! Hopefully the website will tell us more about the necklace. Which one is the one you bought?” Yoohyeon asked as she scanned the market website, which had finally appeared on her screen.

Siyeon pointed to it and held up the real-life product as well so that the girls could take a closer look. All three of them leaned in to read what the website had to say. As they were reading, Jiu marched into the room with the other members in tow.

“There you are! Please tell me that this necklace you bought hasn’t caused a vortex to the underworld to appear under our dorm or something!” Jiu cried, grabbing onto Siyeon’s shoulders in desperation.

“Well, as much as she would love to tell you what happened, Siyeon is not exactly able to dictate her answer at the moment. The necklace didn’t open any portals that I’m aware of, but it did steal Singnie’s voice. We’re actually getting on the website now to see if we can fix this,” Dami spoke up on her roommate’s behalf.

Jiu reacted about as well as expected. She immediately burst into ugly sobs and grabbed Siyeon into a bone-crushing hug. She kept wailing about how she failed as a leader and should have kept a better eye on her poor Siyeon. Sua, Gahyeon, and Handong all exchanged troubled glances. Siyeon could see that everyone was coming to the realization that Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist was currently without a voice. They had schedules approaching and while they might be able to hide behind the excuse that she was sick, that would only work for so long. If they couldn’t fix this, she would probably have to leave the group. The thought made her start to cry, tears spilling down her face as she silently wept. Jiu noticed this and pulled her back in for a gentler hug. Sua walked over and gently dabbed at the girl’s tears with her thumb. Everyone else looked at their main vocal sympathetically. Even without words, they could understand what she was going through. Yoohyeon quickly turned back to the computer screen, determined to fix this as soon as possible. Dami joined her. She felt partially responsible for Siyeon’s predicament since she had been arguing with the girl and egging her on to prove herself. Maybe if Dami hadn’t called her idea stupid in the first place, this never would have happened. Dami tried to fight through her guilt and focus on helping her friend.

Siyeon watched the 97line study the computer screen with focused intensity. They were clearly eager to help her right the situation she had caused. She smiled through her tears, touched by how much her friends wanted to help her. Even though she had only lost her voice a short while ago, it was already becoming the worst torture she had ever had to endure. Singing was the thing that brought her more joy than anything else in the world. She loved her fans and being able to connect with them through music brought her so much happiness. Not to mention, she loved being a part of Dreamcatcher. She loved getting to perform with her talented friends whom she had trained with for many difficult years. Aside from the music, she enjoyed talking to them and laughing with them. All of this was being taken away from her by this stupid necklace. She wished she had never bought it and never put herself and her friends in this predicament. She held her breath and waited for Dami and Yoohyeon to say something. Hopefully the website would present some kind of solution for this problem, although the two girls’ expressions indicated that this was not likely to be the case.

“Please tell me you guys know how to fix this,” Jiu spoke up as she held onto Siyeon.

“Unfortunately, this website is about as helpful as a poorly written Wikipedia article. It doesn’t even tell you what the necklace actually does! It just says that it impacts the voice of the user. Aside from that crappy description and the pricing information, we’ve got nothing. They have no suggestions on how to reverse its effect,” Yoohyeon explained.

Everyone collectively groaned. Siyeon put her head in her hands. So, basically, they were on their own to try and figure out how to fix this. There was no telling how long it would take for them to get her back to normal, or if that was even possible. She could no longer sing the songs she loved so much that they had worked so hard to produce. If schedules came up, Yoohyeon would probably be burdened with the main vocal duties. Not to mention their choreography would be impacted and the other members would have to cover for her absence. The fans would be disappointed and so would their company. She had let everyone down. Siyeon tried to fight back her tears and put on a strong front. She had gotten herself into this mess so she shouldn’t be throwing herself a pity party. She looked out to see how everyone else was handling the news. Yoohyeon was staring at her sympathetically, obviously more focused on Siyeon’s feelings than her own apprehension about possibly having to fill in for her. Gahyeon looked like she wanted to run over and give Siyeon a big hug. Handong was trying to give her a reassuring smile that everything would be okay and they would somehow figure this out. Sua grabbed Siyeon’s hand and gave it a squeeze. Jiu seemed to be taking responsibility as the leader, even though none of this was her fault. Siyeon’s heart broke at the guilt she could see reflected in her eyes. Dami looked guilty as well. Siyeon didn’t blame her at all for what had happened. She had been the one who was so determined to be right that she had made a stupid decision which was now hurting her and many people she cared about. She had to apologize to them. She grabbed Dami’s notebook and started writing. The other girls watched her, eager to know what was going through their main vocal’s mind. Siyeon turned the page so that everyone could see it once she had finished. It read:

‘Everyone, I’m so sorry. I let you guys, our fans, and our company down. We can’t tell people the truth about what happened, which means that you all will be burdened with explaining my absence if we can’t fix this before our schedules pick up. Not to mention, being one member down impacts all of our choreography as well as who sings what parts. You guys are going to have so much more work piled onto you because of me. I want you to know that I don’t expect anybody to help me fix this. You guys will have enough on your plates as it is. I got myself into this mess, so it should be my job to get myself out. I hope you guys can forgive me for being so reckless and causing trouble. It breaks my heart to say this, but I understand if there might be a need for me to leave the band if I can’t resolve this situation. I hope it won’t come to that but we need to consider possible next steps. Anyways, once again, I’m really sorry!’

Siyeon watched the six of them read her apology. By the time they had finished, there was not a dry eye in the room. Everyone came together for a massive group hug. They all sobbed and held onto each other. No one wanted to let go for a long time. They finally had to separate so that they could continue their conversation about this predicament.

“Lee Siyeon, how do you think we could be thinking about the band at a time like this? We only care about you! What are we going to do while our precious happy virus can’t make us laugh with her silly noises and bright laughter? You always make my day. Being leader is easier when I have you around to help me laugh my worries away,” Jiu gushed tearfully as she held Siyeon’s hands.

“She’s right, Siyeon! You make every day more fun. I was a bit shy when I first met all of you, but you made me feel right at home. You have a special energy that makes everyone around you feel happier. I already miss how noisy you are,” Handong agreed.

“I believe that this situation will be fixed. There is no way that a voice as melodic and beautiful as yours can ever be kept silent for long! You speak and sing with your heart, Siyeon. You really inspire me and it hurts my heart to know that you are going through this. Just know that you are not going to bear this burden alone. You would do anything for any one of us if we were in the same situation. Please don’t apologize, okay? We will sort everything out!” Yoohyeon reassured her with a smile.

“I’m more sad for you than anything else. It’s unfair that your voice has been taken away from you by that stupid necklace. You shouldn’t have to feel like this is all your fault. Whoever posted that bad description of that necklace is the one that should be sorry!” Gahyeon insisted.

“For sure, whatever idiot sold you that necklace is going to get a beatdown from me. No one hurts my baby and gets away with it! Because of them I have to live without your infectious laugh, your angelic singing, and those beautiful weird noises you make. Not to mention they took your smile away, so I am going to make them pay!” Sua declared as she squeezed Siyeon closer to her.

“I hope you know that I am not resting until you get your voice back. I’m so sorry for arguing with you. If you hadn’t felt like you needed to prove yourself to me, this probably never would have happened. I’m sorry for putting you down like that and making you feel that way. We are going to fix this. I would never let it come to you leaving the group, ever,” Dami promised Siyeon as she stared deep into her eyes.

Siyeon’s lip began to wobble at the heartfelt words her friends spoke to her. Even though she had screwed up and was risking everything they had worked so hard for, all they cared about was making her feel loved. What had she done to deserve such wonderful friends? She wanted to tell them how much all of this meant to her but this damn necklace was making that pretty difficult. Her wrist was already aching from writing down her apology. She glared down at the stupid piece of jewelry. She didn’t even want to look at it anymore. She angrily ripped it off of her neck and threw it to the ground before stomping on it and shattering it into a million pieces. Everyone else watched her impulsive decision with horrified expressions.

“What are you doing? What if we can’t fix your voice without the necklace?” Dami yelled.

“Seriously, couldn’t you have given us time to read into this before you broke it?” Yoohyeon cried.

“Take that, stupid piece of crap!” Siyeon yelled.

Everyone blinked. Jiu and Sua looked at each other, as did Handong and Gahyeon, as well as Yoohyeon and Dami. All eyes fell back on Siyeon, who was still glaring down at the remains of the necklace. It took a moment for her to register what had happened before she was leaping for joy around the room.

“Hey, breaking the necklace worked! I got my voice back!” Siyeon gushed as the other members cheered and ran in for another group hug.

Siyeon smiled and rubbed her vocal cords affectionately. She had not been without her voice for long, but she had certainly missed it. She began to sing some of her favorite songs passionately. She put her heart and soul into every word, treasuring her voice and intending to never take it for granted ever again. Everyone smiled at her as they enjoyed the beautiful performance. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Siyeon’s voice got unusually deep and raspy. It sounded like someone’s grandpa was singing. The girls gawked at Siyeon who looked just as confused as they did. She cleared her throat and tried again, and this time a toddler’s voice came out of her mouth. She touched her throat and continued to make noises, her voice changing each time. Finally, it returned to normal after several attempts. Everyone blinked in surprise at the bizarre experience.

“When you broke the necklace it must have released every voice that had been trapped inside,” Dami realized.

“And all of those voices ended up with Siyeon. Which means that her voice might randomly change at any time,” Gahyeon observed.

Everyone seemed to be nursing a headache as they immediately understood their new predicament. Performances would be a lot more difficult if their main vocalist suddenly sounded like an old man in the middle of a song. Siyeon, on the other hand, seemed unbothered by the situation.

“Oh come on, guys! This is kind of cool. See, now I sound like a fancy British gentleman. This necklace is pretty cool after all!” the main vocalist cheered as her voice continued to fluctuate.

The other members exchanged exasperated looks. Sometimes, Siyeon was too much of a happy virus for her own good. Still, even if they had a new problem on their hands, everyone was thrilled that she had her voice back. Life would definitely not be the same without Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist being her loud, cheery self. Everyone couldn’t help but laugh and celebrate the fact that at least their biggest problem had been solved-Siyeon was able to smile again.


	5. Miss Cellophane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The title is a reference to the musical Chicago, and might give you an idea of what this chapter's about if you're familiar with it! This chapter makes me even sadder than the previous one. :') I really wanted to capture that HANDONG DESERVES THE WORLD!! I made sure to put in a happy ending but this one has lots of angst and feels so BEWARE! Sidenote: I am deciding btw two ships for the next chapter but FINALLY there will be some shipping so pls look forward to that. I will make sure to update the tags once I decide which one to use. Anyways, I hope you enjoy!

Emotions and magical energy sometimes combine to create disastrous results. Handong learned this the hard way one day after a fanmeet. 

It was certainly a whirlwind of a day for Dreamcatcher. They had been busy working on their latest comeback and were currently involved in various promotions and activities.This particular fanmeet had been a vibrant scene. The girls had already performed to a sea of flashing lights as fansites captured their every move. Now they got to meet the faces behind the fancy cameras and the other fans who had come to support them. It was always a pleasure to see the people who helped make everything worth it. It did not take long for the room filled with the sound of voices as the fans made their way over to say hello and the members returned their greetings.

Being around fans was both a blessing and a struggle for the witches of Dreamcatcher. Having magical powers was difficult, especially when living the life of an idol. As famous singers, the girls were often scared that one of them would accidentally expose their powers in a public setting. They feared that their fans would learn the truth about who they were and start to hate them. After all, everyone seemed to think witches were in the same category as monsters, demons, and other unwanted evils. This fear of losing the love of their fans combined with the stress of their busy schedule weighed heavily on the members. While they still had to be careful to make sure their powers were kept a secret, fanmeets were a fun way for the girls to take their minds off of their difficult situation. They enjoyed smiling and laughing with their fans who were so loving and kind to them.

Handong herself was enjoying the chance to be with the fans, but something was bothering her. She tried not to let it show, not wanting to seem ungrateful to those who had come out to see her. In fact, she wished she could stifle her feelings completely. She had done her best to keep smiling throughout the day, but she was beginning to feel emotionally exhausted. She couldn’t help but notice that during the performance, the other members had received boisterous fanchants while hers seemed more quiet. She was grateful for those who cheered her name with enthusiasm, but it seemed many people had opted to stay silent during her lines. Had she done something wrong? She knew there was a recent performance she had been unable to attend. Perhaps the fans felt she had let them down? She tried to hide her worry as she continued to smile at the fans who were talking to her. They had waited in line all day to meet the group and she couldn’t let her mood ruin their excitement. She bottled up her emotions and forced herself to think positively. Still, she could not suppress some of the negative thoughts nagging at the back of her mind as the fanmeet continued.

There was another thing that made Handong extra nervous at fanmeets. While the others had the burden of making sure their magic was kept under wraps, she also had the extra stress of speaking a less familiar language. She had made the decision to come to Korea in order to follow her dream, but it certainly did not make things easier for her. She often worried that she would forget important words and phrases and make a fool of herself and the group. She was self conscious about her ability to speak Korean, and often found herself hanging back and being quiet during group activities. As the event continued, she focused all of her energy on listening to the fans, trying to piece together whatever they were saying. She had gotten better at the language, but it sometimes took her a moment to formulate a response she was comfortable delivering. She wondered if some of the fans were eager to leave her side and talk to the more outgoing members. After all, she had noticed that most of the people she spoke to clearly had other members who were their favorite. She was glad that her friends got the love they deserved, but it still hurt to see how much attention everyone else seemed to be getting. Handong was doing her best, but she just wasn’t as comfortable and easygoing as the others. The fans probably picked up on that and felt weird being around her. She tried to snap herself out of it, but she found her morale starting to drop. This was not the first time she had felt this way. In the past, she had noticed a similar pattern at fansigns. Today, though, it was beginning to weigh on her. By the end of the day, she was eager to go home. She forced a smile onto her face as they waved goodbye to the fans and was the first to race towards their car.

“Are you okay, Dongie? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you run so fast. You got out of there in record speed!” Sua observed as they got in the car.

“Oh no, do you think the fans noticed? I hope they weren’t offended,” Handong worried as she sat down in her spot and glanced out the window to check on them.

“I’m sure they understand. It’s been a long day. Are you alright?” Yoohyeon entered the conversation, placing her hand on Handong’s shoulder.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just really want to get back to the dorm and get some sleep,” Dreamcatcher’s Chinese member lied.

“I totally get how you feel! It has been a busy past couple of days. Still, events like today make it all worth it. Our fans sure are the best, aren’t they?” Jiu sighed contentedly.

Everyone nodded in agreement. The members began gushing about some of their favorite interactions from the fansign. Handong smiled at the others as they raved about delicious treats fans had gifted them and the cute toys and outfits they had enjoyed playing with. Handong had received many of these things herself and was happy to hear that everyone else had enjoyed their gifts too. Then the girls began mentioning some of the conversations they had had with fans. Handong began to feel a pang of guilt since she had kept her interactions relatively brief. She had tried her hardest, but she was already feeling drained and it was hurting her focus so she was unable to say much. She felt that maybe she had let the fans down. Handong tried to keep her expression as neutral as possible until they got home. Even though she was hurting, she didn’t want the members to worry. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice her silence or else they weren’t paying her much mind. It seemed that they were all wrapped up in the excitement of the day. The other members continued their conversation excitedly while Handong just watched and tried not to bring the mood down. Eventually, they reached the dorm and Handong escaped to her and Gahyeon’s room the moment the doors opened.

“Wow, she must be really tired,” Gahyeon commented as she watched her roommate run off.

Handong closed the door and collapsed onto her bed. She tried to hold back her tears in case Gahyeon decided to come in. She heard the youngest member loudly ask the others if they wanted to watch a movie in the living room with her. That was Handong’s cue that she could have some alone time to process whatever she was feeling. She wanted to stop the dull ache in her chest. Why did she have to feel this way? She was the one who had made the decision to join a Korean pop group despite being Chinese. She should have expected there to be some difficulties involved. The rest of her members were native Koreans and thus they could speak the language fluently. That was why they sang the majority of the lyrics and were able to interact with fans more comfortably. Still, why did it sometimes feel like she was invisible? She was doing her best, but it felt like she was only falling further behind the others as they rose in popularity. She tried to keep her sobs as quiet as possible so as not to bother the others. She could hear them laughing at the film they were watching in the living room. It sounded like everybody else was in a cheery mood after the fansign, and here she was in her room feeling sorry for herself. She was so angry with herself for feeling this way when the fans and her members were so good to her. She was so lucky to be in this group, but all she could do was focus on the pain she felt. Why was she so selfish? Handong lowered her head onto her pillow and sobbed. Sometimes she felt like she should just disappear. Then she wouldn’t have to weigh everyone down. 

As Handong cried, a dull, gray mist filled the room. At first, she was too upset to notice it. Her vision was blurred with tears and her mind was wrapped up with her sadness. Suddenly, she felt the temperature drop. Why had it gotten so cold out of nowhere? She looked around the room, teardrops still trickling down her cheeks. In addition to the sudden temperature change, she felt strange. It was as if she was suddenly weightless. She shivered, bringing her arms up to embrace herself. She was shocked when she felt absolutely nothing. She had no sense of her body. It was as if it didn’t physically exist. She looked down to see that where her hand should be, there was nothing. Her heart dropped. Was she hallucinating? Had she cried herself to sleep? This certainly seemed like some kind of nightmare. She looked around frantically and tried to tug on different parts of her body to see if she could wake herself up. She still saw and felt nothing. Handong was scared. Had her wish to disappear come true? She should have been more careful as a person with magical powers. She had probably gotten herself so upset that she had lost control of her magic and done this to herself. She was unsure of what to do or how to feel. She laid back down on her bed and continued to cry. Maybe it was better this way, she realized. This way she could stop burdening everyone else. At least now she definitely wouldn’t have to worry about disrupting her members. They probably wouldn’t be able to hear her in her current state. She laid in her bed for hours, wallowing in her sadness while the members cheerfully talked to each other outside, unaware of what was happening.  
~  
Finally, the movie had come to an end. Everyone wished each other good night and headed to their rooms. Gahyeon was certainly ready to get some beauty rest. Their schedules had been especially busy lately and a good night’s sleep sounded wonderful. She hoped that her roommate Handong was resting well. She was sad that the other girl had been too tired to join them for the movie. She opened the door to her shared room with Handong as gently as she could, careful not to wake her sleeping roommate. Dreamcatcher’s youngest member noticed that Handong was not in her bed. Her roommate had probably snuck off to the restroom while they were watching the movie. She figured the other girl would be back soon and focused on climbing into her comfiest pajamas. She was determined to get the best night’s sleep she possibly could. Once she finished changing, she curled up in her bed and quickly drifted into sleep. All the while, Gahyeon was unaware that her roommate was watching her sadly.

“So she really has no idea I’m here,” Handong whispered to herself, her heart breaking.

It seemed that she was really like a ghost at the moment. Gahyeon couldn’t see her or hear her, otherwise she would have reacted to her cries when she entered the room. Handong’s situation was beginning to make her feel hopeless. If no one was able to find her, what would happen? Would the others report her as missing? It would be a hopeless case to try and solve. Everyone would probably have to move on with their lives and assume she had been lost forever. She would have no way of letting them know what really happened. The thought of having to watch as her friends, family, and fans forgot about her made Handong even more upset. This wasn’t fair! Why did she have to be stuck with these powers? Why couldn’t she feel sorry for herself like a normal person without becoming invisible to everyone she cared about? She didn’t even know what to do anymore. She supposed her only options were to try to fix this or else accept her fate and suffer for the rest of her life. She honestly wasn’t sure which was the better choice. Sighing, she fell to the floor and put her head in her hands. Her movement rattled the dresser behind her, which woke Gahyeon up.

“Is someone there? Dongie, are you back?” the youngest called out.

Handong blinked surprisedly. She looked up at her roommate who was looking past her at the dresser. The other girl seemed a bit scared. She had probably been startled by the sudden, unexplained noise. If she heard that, then maybe there was hope that Handong could communicate that she was here. The thing she needed most right now was a friend. Even though she felt terrible burdening the younger member with her problems, especially when she had brought this upon herself, she hoped the other girl could forgive her selfishness. Taking a deep breath, Handong looked for anything else in the room that could be used to get Gahyeon’s attention. Her eyes lit up when she gazed at their makeup collection. She gathered some eyeliner and lipstick to use as writing increments as well as a container of facial powder. She really hoped this would work.

Gahyeon rubbed her eyes and gawked at the scene in front of her. She was convinced that she had to be hallucinating. There was no way this was actually happening. Her lack of sleep was causing her to go nuts-that had to be it. The floating makeup near her counter was a product of her brain being fried from their busy schedules. After all, eyeliner and lipstick don’t just pick themselves up. Well, maybe there was a spell that could do that, but it would be a stupid one unless it also applied them to a person’s face. ‘Focus, Gahyeon!’ she told herself. Dreamcatcher’s youngest member decided to get up from her bed and investigate. As Gahyeon drew closer to the floating applicators, she noticed that they were scrawling something on the wall. She felt a shiver run down her spine. This was getting beyond creepy. Was a ghost trying to communicate with her from the other side? The youngest member had to remind herself that ghosts had never been scientifically proven to be real, but then again witches hadn't been either. Even though she was scared, she was curious about what was happening She whispered “Fighting!” to herself, clenched her fists, and took the bravest stance she could muster as she watched and waited for the writing to come to an end.

Handong could feel Gahyeon’s eyes on her. She had seen the other girl leave her bed when she grabbed the various products from their vanity. It seemed that she had caught her roommate’s attention. She felt bad seeing how scared the other girl looked, but there was not much she could do to ease those fears at the moment. No one could see her or hear her, so she was reduced to writing on the walls like some kind of creepy phantom. Now she had to decide what to write in order to communicate that she was here. Handong groaned in frustration. This was one of those times where she wished she and the others shared the same native language. Why was this so difficult? She tried to remember what symbols to use in order to say ‘It’s me, Handong.’ She scribbled down what she seemed to think was the right answer. Once she was done, she turned around and eagerly waited for Gahyeon to read her message.

Gahyeon watched the writing increments come to a stop. It appeared that whatever was writing on the walls was done. She stepped in closer to read the message. She had no idea whether it was intended for her or not, but if someone was writing on her walls, it was her business. Her voice shook as she read the message aloud.

“I have Handong? Who has Handong? Who or, uh, what are you? Oh my god, is my roommate dead?” the youngest panicked.

Handong slapped her currently nonexistent palm to her forehead. Whoops, she had messed up. Thankfully, she still had the powder as her Plan B. She opened the container and dumped it all over herself. She figured that if Gahyeon could see everything except for her, pouring something on herself would at least make her somewhat visible. Unfortunately, while it was a great idea, it did not make the sudden powdery, white outline that appeared any less scary.

“MOMMY!” Gahyeon screamed, running out of the room.

Handong watched her leave with a forlorn expression. It seemed like she had just blown her chance to let Gahyeon know what had happened to her. What was she going to do now?  
~  
Sua ran out into the hall, holding an umbrella she had found on the floor as a weapon. She had heard their youngest member screaming, which had immediately jerked her out of bed. She was about to barge into Gahyeon and Handong’s room to find out what was wrong when the former raced out of the room and into her arms. The impact caused Sua to drop what she was holding and let out a startled scream of her own. The remaining members were woken up by the noise and gathered around the duo. Everyone was still in their pajamas and many of the girls were nursing a wicked case of bedhead.

“What is going on?” Jiu asked, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

“I was about to ask that myself. You scared the hell out of me, Gahyeon! Are you okay? What made you scream like that?” Sua demanded.

“I w-woke up because there was a weird noise and I thought it was Handong b-because she wasn’t t-there when I went into the room after the movie, but th-then something grabbed our makeup and started using it to w-write on the wall and, and a ghost said it has Handong! I know it’s t-true because then she turned all white and looked like a g-g-ghost!!” Dreamcatcher’s youngest member blubbered as she clung to Sua.

“WHAT?” the remaining members cried out simultaneously.

“Gahyeon, are you absolutely sure you weren’t dreaming? We have had a stressful past few days. I could easily see the sleep deprivation causing you to have some intense nightmares,” Dami reasoned.

“Go take a look for yourselves! She’s probably still in there!” Gahyeon angrily insisted.

The other girls decided to check out the situation. All of them were hoping against all odds that Gahyeon was just hallucinating due to a lack of sleep. They couldn’t bear the thought of anything bad happening to their beloved Handong. Jiu could see that the youngest member was upset by whatever she had seen and seemed to really believe that it was true. Dreamcatcher’s leader engulfed her in a comforting hug and led everyone into the duo’s room.

Handong footsteps heading into her room and turned to see who was there. She hoped Gahyeon was back and that she could try to explain her earlier message. She was surprised to see that her roommate had brought the other members with her. Jiu was holding Gahyeon who looked distressed. She watched as the others filed in and gathered in front of the wall she had written on. It did not take long for all of them to process the ominous ‘I have Handong’ scrawled out in red lipstick as well as the powdery white outline of their Chinese member. Handong’s eardrums burst from the flurry of screams that followed. Sua leapt into Siyeon’s arms, the two of them shrieking at an ear-splitting volume. Yoohyeon wailed and clung to Dami who let out a cute noise of surprise. Jiu and Gahyeon cried as they embraced each other. Handong watched her friends awkwardly, unsure of what to do since they wouldn’t be able to hear her if she tried to talk. She supposed she could try writing again, but that hadn’t gone so well for her the first time. She decided to give them a moment to calm down.

“Dongie’s a ghost! I can’t believe I let this happen. What kind of a leader am I? She needed our help and I was just sitting right outside of her room while a ghost ate her. Oh Dongie, I’m so sorry. I hope you can forgive me. We’ll find a way to bring you back, or my name isn’t Jiu. You can count on me, Dongie! You mean too much to me, our fans, and the world for us to give up on you. I will pray as much as it takes to get you back!” Jiu cried, clasping her hands together.

Handong’s eyes widened. She hadn’t seen Jiu this upset since Siyeon lost her voice. Even though the other girl was a bit off on what had actually happened, she was still touched by her words. What a good leader. Handong felt a lump forming in her throat. Before she could do anything else, the remaining members let out a barrage of heartfelt feelings.

“Give us back Handong, you uh, dumb ghost! She doesn’t deserve this. I may not be able to see you and I may be afraid of ghosts, but I’ll fight you if I have to! I would do it for Handong. She means the world to this group. We can’t function without our beautiful Chinese princess! So you give her back, or uh, or else we’ll um, I don’t know what we’ll do but we won’t let you keep her. I know she’s really pretty and wonderful, but she belongs to Dreamcatcher. You can’t have her!” Yoohyeon argued with the nonexistent “ghost” as her head snapped all around the room trying to locate something that wasn’t there.

“Yeah, what Yoohyeon said! You mess with Handong, you mess with all of us. We are a team and we belong together as seven members. I don’t know if ghosts can feel pain or not, but I’d love to try making you suffer for what you’ve done to our angel!” Siyeon yelled as she held up her fists menacingly.

Dami rolled her eyes, “Ignore these two idiots, please. Ghost thing, I hope you are not beyond reasoning. If you give us back Handong, we will give you whatever you want. There is no price too high if it means getting her back. Handong means a lot to this group. Without Handong, Dreamcatcher isn’t the same. We cannot imagine our lives without her. Please give us back our friend. We’ll do whatever it takes. If you aren’t willing to reason with us, then I take back what I said about Yoohyeon and Siyeon and we’ll kick your ghost ass!” the main rapper declared.

“I just want you to know that you suck for taking Handong and we love her a lot! We’ll get her back no matter what. You can’t keep us apart because we are all meant to be together!” Sua chimed in.

Gahyeon was the last to speak up, “My roommate means a lot to me and I really want her back. Please, please, give us back Handong. She is a kind, beautiful person and she works so hard. She and I were the new girls when we met everyone and she made me feel safe. We have a special connection and I can’t imagine never being able to see her or talk to her again. She has given so much to all of us and our fans. If you take her away, you’re committing a crime against the whole world because everyone deserves to know how great Dongie is. Please give her back, I’m begging you!” the youngest sobbed cutely.

Everyone’s words had moved Handong, but it was Gahyeon’s that really got to her. The currently invisible girl felt herself begin to cry. This time it was not out of the grief of feeling invisible, but from the love that her members had demonstrated for her. Even if they were scared and unsure of what was going on, they were willing to throw that aside and fight for her. She couldn’t believe that she had allowed herself to feel so helpless and alone with people like this by her side. Even if she sometimes felt discouraged, there would always be her beloved friends to fall back on. She wished she could be with them now rather than watching them cry because of her. They were hurting because they thought some evil being had taken her away, when in reality, the only thing that had made her disappear was herself. Handong’s heart was full of appreciation for her members who seemed to love and care for her so much.

“Thank you guys so much, I love you all,” she whispered, her voice clenched with emotion.

Even if the others wouldn’t be able to hear it, she still wanted to speak these words from her heart. She was sad that they would not be able to be together but she hoped that somehow her words and feelings would reach them and help them to be okay.

“Don’t thank us. We love you too,” Yoohyeon said with a relieved expression.

Handong blinked. Did Yoohyeon just reply to her? Did that mean that she heard her voice? Shocked, she brought her hand to her face and was pleasantly surprised to feel the sensation of her fingers against her cheek. Double checking to be sure, she looked and saw that there was in fact a human body in her field of vision. It was her-she was visible again! She gasped, which caused her to inhale a generous helping of the powder she had dumped on herself earlier. This action prompted a dainty sneeze. Everyone giggled at the cute sight and raced to hug their friend.

“Dongie, the ghost gave you back! We’re so sorry for not knowing you needed our help while we were watching the movie. By the way, how did you end up covered in powder? Did the ghost do that to you?” Siyeon wondered.

“Um, actually, that’s not quite what happened. This is a bit embarrassing for me to admit, and you all have the full right to hate me for what I’m about to say, but I turned myself invisible. I was so upset after the fanmeet today that I convinced myself that I should just disappear. I’m so ashamed that I got wrapped up in my selfishness and caused this problem. Still, I’m so grateful that you all were able to reverse my wrongdoing with your kind words. I don’t deserve any of you,” Handong explained, bowing her head in shame.

Everyone looked at her empathetically. All of them had felt the same way at one time or another. Jiu cupped Handong’s cheeks in her soft hands and raised the other girl’s forehead until it touched hers.

“Listen to me, Dongie, you are not a burden. You do not need to apologize to us for having feelings. We’re just glad you’re okay. All of us have gone through hardships and it’s important for us to come to each other when we’re feeling sad. Next time, please talk to us when you’re upset, okay? I know I can speak for everyone when I say we’re sorry for not noticing what you were going through, but we never want you to suffer alone again, okay? When you’re ready, let’s talk about what you’re going through and give each other strength,” she said softly.

Handong felt her lower lip tremble at the leader’s sweet words. She began to sob loudly, the tears streaming down her face. Everyone looked at each other, feeling their eyes cloud with tears as well. Soon Dreamcatcher was gathered into yet another group hug. All of the girls clung to each other as they sobbed loudly about how much they loved Handong. Everyone promised to watch out for her feelings more carefully and begged her to talk to them next time she was upset.

“Wait a minute, if you were invisible, does that mean that you were the one who wrote on our wall?” Gahyeon realized, interrupting the warm and fuzzy moment.

Handong blushed, “Yep, that was me. I meant to tell you it was me, but I accidentally used the wrong words. Sorry for scaring you, Gahyeonie,” she mumbled.

Sua snickered, “You scared the crap out of her, Dongie! She screamed so loud I almost fell out of my bed just from the impact of the soundwaves!” she teased.

Gahyeon pouted, “You’re just as loud as I am,” she pointed out.

“What was that, you brat?” the older girl demanded.

“Anyways,” Gahyeon changed the subject, “I forgive you for scaring me, Dongie. However, please make sure to clean up the makeup from our walls when you get the chance. You might want to take a shower to wash off the powder first. Speaking of the powder, that stuff isn’t cheap! My mom spent good money on it so I could look good onstage. You’re lucky I like you, so I won’t make you buy me a replacement container. Anyways, it’s good to have you back, roomie. Please don’t disappear again,” she ended her speech with a kiss to the Chinese member’s cheek.

Handong smiled, “I wouldn’t even dream of it,” she assured her.

With that, everyone bid each other good night and headed their separate ways to finally get a good night’s rest. Everyone, especially Handong, would be able to sleep peacefully with the knowledge of how much Dreamcatcher cared about each other.


	6. In my Head, Out of my Hands [Jiyoo/Suayeon]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I was so stumped on what to title this chapter. So, so, stumped. Anyways, WE HAVE SHIPS PEOPLE! There's not a ton of it, but a wee lil bit to get things started. I was gonna keep it to just a Yoohyeon ship, but I'm so weak for Suayeon and they had to go and do the thing at the Santiago concert. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, they went out of there way to pick a question that involved them kissing it was WILD) Without further rambling, pls enjoy this chapter which is centered around our beloved toll angel Yoohyeon :D

Yoohyeon felt like her brain would burst if she stared at the piece of paper in front of her any longer. She was clearly too tired to continue her studies. Trying to decipher anything else at this point would be fighting a losing battle. The text was beginning to blur together in a chaotic scramble on the page. Dreamcatcher’s lead vocal slammed her book closed and rested her chin on its firm cover.

“I surrender! I’m sorry Insomnias, I promise I’ll work harder for you tomorrow,” she whined.

Dreamcatcher was lucky to have so many fans all over the world, and the girls really did cherish them. Still, this meant that they needed to be able to communicate in a variety of languages in order to be able to tell their fans how much they appreciated their support. The other members insisted Yoohyeon was a natural at learning other languages, therefore, she was usually the one in charge of speaking to international fans. Yoohyeon enjoyed having this responsibility, but it could be quite time consuming. She spent a majority of her days off with her nose in a book as she tried to memorize the basics of another language’s alphabet and common phrases. She had become well-versed in many different languages, and was pleased to be able to demonstrate her skills and hold simple conversations with a variety of fans. Still, it was tiresome to spend so much time studying when life as an idol was already so hectic. Yoohyeon tried to remind herself that she was doing this for the Insomnias who made it all worth it. Sometimes, though, she found herself wishing there was an easier way for her to be able to communicate with fans who didn’t speak Korean. If only there was some universal language that could make her magically understand everyone all the time.

“Wait a minute, what am I doing wishing that there was a way to magically understand our fans? I am magical. There’s probably a spell for this!” Yoohyeon realized as she lifted her head from the book.

Yoohyeon closed her eyes and pursed her lips in thought. Dreamcatcher shared one giant book which contained the fundamental spells witches could memorize as well as reversal spells for ailments resulting from failed attempts at using magic. As the only member (except for Dami) who had actually read this book from cover to cover, Yoohyeon knew there was no written spell that would accomplish the goal she had in mind. She would have to wing it. Yoohyeon concentrated on the task at hand. As a magic user, it was dangerous to be distracted when casting spells. For example, one time Gahyeon had been thinking about a cute cat she saw when she was trying to help Handong with a bad hair day. Rest assured, Handong didn’t speak to their youngest until Jiu found a reversal spell that made her stop hacking up hairballs. 

Clearing her mind of all possible distractions, Yoohyeon focused her magic energy and prepared to utilize it. She pictured the fans she loved so much, as well as the other members who relied on her help when interacting with their beloved Insomnias. She channeled her desire to be able to help everyone communicate with each other through her. Yoohyeon felt power flow through her veins as her spell began to take effect. A slight spark came across her field of vision and quickly dissipated. Yoohyeon blinked, wondering what had taken place. She would need to find someone to talk to and test out her spell. Maybe she could ask Handong to speak Chinese with her? Yoohyeon went off to find the other girl.  
~  
Emerging from her room, Yoohyeon crept into the living area to begin her search for Handong. She noticed Dami reading a book on the couch beside Gahyeon who was playing on her phone. Yoohyeon was about to ask if either one of them knew where Handong was when she felt a bizarre sensation. Before she could say anything else, both Dami’s and Gahyeon’s voices spoke up. The strange thing was, neither of them had moved their lips. In fact, they had yet to even look up from what they were doing and acknowledge that Yoohyeon had entered the room.

‘You know, this book is good and all, but why does the protagonist need a man? Authors are so predictable sometimes. Put her with a woman, you coward,’ Yoohyeon heard Dami “say,” despite the main rapper’s eyes still glued to her book while her lips remained closed.

‘Wow, the selca I took today is so cute! Maybe I should post it to our Twitter?’ Yoohyeon heard Gahyeon ask, even though the youngest member was silently assessing something on her phone.

Yoohyeon shrugged, figuring that maybe the duo had learned ventriloquism while she was gone.

“Ooh, let me see your pic, Gahyeonie! I can help you decide if it’s Twitter-worthy or not,” she offered as she plopped down beside the youngest member and took a look.

Gahyeon gawked at her, “I didn’t even see you come in. Did you watch me take the picture?” she questioned.

Yoohyeon frowned and shook her head, “First of all, it’s kind of rude not to say hello when someone walks into the room, you know. Second of all, you just told me you took a picture and were wondering if you should post it,” the taller girl pointed out.

“I was definitely thinking that, but I didn’t say it out loud. You’re messing with me, aren’t you? You were probably standing there taking pictures of me taking pictures of myself. Very funny, I hope you enjoyed yourself,” Gahyeon sulked.

Yoohyeon put her hand over her heart as she insisted, “I would never! I can’t believe you think I would pick on you when you’re clearly feelin’ yourself. I swear on my copy of Overwatch that I just came in and heard you wondering whether or not to post your selfie.”

“Dude, she didn’t say anything. Gahyeon’s voice is loud enough to disrupt the time-space continuum. I would have heard her if she was talking. The kid’s been quiet as a mouse, except for the occasional click of her phone camera,” Dami chimed in.

“Some help you are! I heard you too, you know. You’re sick of heterosexual couples in your literature options,” Yoohyeon fired back at the main rapper.

Dami nearly choked on air. Her and Gahyeon looked at each other and then back at Yoohyeon. Both of them had been next to each other this entire time and hadn’t heard the other say a word. How had Yoohyeon known what both of them were thinking inside their heads without them voicing these things out loud?

“Holy crap, I think you read our minds,” Dami muttered with wide eyes.

“That has to be it! Neither one of us said anything, yet she knew exactly what was in our heads the moment she entered the room,” Gahyeon nodded.

Yoohyeon’s eyes widened. So that’s what her spell had done! Well, so much for finding Handong. She could work with this. After all, reading minds sounded pretty cool. Yoohyeon jumped up and down in excitement.

“Whoa, cool! I cast a spell to help me communicate with fans better and I guess it made me able to do this instead. We should test it out some more. I’m gonna try and read your minds again, okay?” she suggested, her excitement bursting.

Gahyeon and Dami both nodded their approval. They seemed excited about her new ability too. Both girls closed their eyes and tried to come up with something interesting. Yoohyeon concentrated on each girl separately and channel the tingling sensation she’d felt earlier in her brain. To her elation, she could hear Dami’s and Gahyeon’s voices once again.

‘Hm, what to think? It has to be something really good. Focus, Gahyeon! Wait a minute? What if she’s reading my mind now? Aw darn it, I’m thinking too much about thinking!’ Gahyeon inwardly groaned.

“Aw, don’t worry, Gahyeonie! It still worked. Don’t overthink it,” Yoohyeon reassured her.

She turned her attention to Dami and read her mind.

‘Let’s see, I’ll recite a poem in my head for you to enjoy. Yoohyeon, you are a tree. You are the same age as me. When I get annoyed, you never let me be. Yoohyeon, you annoying tree,’ the main rapper’s thoughts recited in a mocking tone.

“How rude! I am neither annoying nor a tree!” Yoohyeon huffed indignantly.

Dami smirked, “Yep, she can read minds alright,” she affirmed while Gahyeon giggled.

“Whatever, you two are no fun anymore. I’m gonna go try out my new power on the others,” Yoohyeon scoffed before storming out of the room.

“Be careful, Yoohyeon! You never know what you might find out,” Dami warned as the other girl left.

Dreamcatcher’s main rapper and youngest member exchanged worried glances once she was gone. In the moment, Yoohyeon’s mind-reading ability had been cool. Now that she was off to keep testing it out, they were aware of the potential consequences.

“That was fun and all, but now I’m a little worried. What if she finds out about you-know-what?” Gahyeon whispered once Yoohyeon was out of earshot and hopefully out of mind-reading proximity.

Dami sighed, “Things might not be the same around here anymore if she does.”  
~  
Yoohyeon wandered throughout the dorms in search of the remaining members. Eventually, she made her way into the room where they held their dance practices. As expected, Sua was there working on more choreography. Yoohyeon plopped down on the ground so that she could watch their main dancer at work (and hopefully read her mind while she was it.) Unfortunately, Sua was so focused on her dancing that all Yoohyeon could hear in her thoughts was rhythmic counting as she rattled off the beats of the music. She would have to wait until the older girl was done to get to the good stuff. When the routine was over, Yoohyeon clapped loudly to alert the other girl of her presence. Sua turned around, surprised that she had company.

“Oh, hey there, Yoohyeon! Sorry I didn’t hear you come in. Are you here to work on something? It’s unusual to see you here by yourself,” Sua commented as she went to grab her water bottle which Yoohyeon handed to her.

“Nope, I was just taking a stroll around the dorms and thought I’d watch my roommate in her element,” Yoohyeon replied sweetly.

Sua quirked an eyebrow and finished sipping her water.

“Yeah, right. You’re never this nice to me unless you need something. What do you want?” the shorter girl inquired.

“You think so lowly of me. Am I not allowed to hang out with the pretty dancer I share a room with?” Yoohyeon faked sadness, opting not to tell Sua about her telepathy just yet.

‘Ugh, she’s persistent. I gotta think of a way to get rid of her before Siyeon gets here,’ Yoohyeon heard the main dancer tell herself.

Yoohyeon scrunched her face in confusion. Why didn’t Sua want her there while she hung out with Siyeon? The trio had hung out plenty of times before and there never seemed to be any problems. Were they practicing some kind of secret stage for one of their concerts or something? Whatever was going on, it had piqued her interest and she was determined to figure it out.

“Uh, Yoohyeon, I just remembered that Jiu asked me where you were earlier. It sounded like she really needs to talk to you,” Sua lied.

Yoohyeon stared at her roommate, “Oh, really? I actually just talked to her a little while ago. She told me where to find you,” she fired back. Two could play at this game.

‘Shit, she saw right through me! How am I going to get her out of here? Siyeon and I haven’t had time to ourselves in ages with all of the group activities we’ve been having. I love Yoohyeon to bits, but right now I wanna punch her. Why can’t she just let me have alone time with my girlfriend?’ Sua’s thoughts raged.

“G-girlfriend? You...Siyeon...girlfriend?” Yoohyeon began to malfunction, taken aback by the unexpected revelation.

Sua’s eyes widened, “Who told you that?” she demanded.

‘Is Siyeon telling people about us? I thought we agreed to keep things under wraps until we were sure this is what we wanted. We’ve only been dating a few weeks! Either that, or maybe I accidentally talked about it in my sleep? Maybe I can pass it off as me having some kind of weird dream. Ugh, Siyeon is going to kill me if I accidentally revealed our relationship. Then again, I’m gonna kill her if it turns out she’s telling people about us without letting me know!’ Sua ranted in her head while Yoohyeon listened in shock.

Yoohyeon had certainly found herself in a pickle. Sua sounded awfully pissed off in her head. The younger was afraid to tell her roommate the truth that she had read her thoughts and invaded her privacy. Still, it would be awful for her to lie and try to pin the blame on anybody else. Sua would beat herself up about it and probably make Siyeon mad at her if Yoohyeon lied and said that her roommate had mentioned it in her sleep. On the other hand, saying Siyeon told her would probably unleash Sua’s fury on the main vocalist. Blaming another member was out of the question as well because whoever’s name she threw out would get in trouble for spying on the girls and spreading the news of their secret romance. Fearing the older girl, Yoohyeon put her hands up defensively and explained herself.

“No one told me anything! Er, I mean, I guess you could say you told me, but not on purpose. I cast a spell earlier that gave me the ability to read minds. When I found you, my plan was to keep testing it out. I didn’t mean to find out about you and Siyeon. Can you please forgive me? I promise to keep this between us,” the taller girl confessed, looking at her roommate with a pleading expression.

“You WHAT? I can’t believe you were just looking into my innermost thoughts without my permission! I’m not just a guinea pig for you to try your magic on. I don’t want you reading my thoughts again, you understand? Now I’m going to have to explain to Siyeon that someone knows about us and she’s probably going to freak. You get out of here before she gets here so I can handle this. This conversation isn’t over, just so you know. We’ll talk more later!” Sua snapped as she shoved Yoohyeon out the door.

Yoohyeon watched the door slam in her face. She felt like crap. Even if she hadn’t intended to hurt Sua the way she did, she knew she had screwed up. She had no business intruding on the main dancer’s thoughts the way she had. Now she had a secret to keep from the others and she had become a possible threat to a budding relationship between two people she cared about. Yoohyeon saw Siyeon approaching the door. The main vocalist was humming a cheerful tune to herself as she turned the corner. Yoohyeon found herself unintentionally reading her mind.

‘Gosh, it’s been ages since I’ve had the chance to hang out with Sua! I hope she’s still feeling alright about this. I can really see it going somewhere. I hope it’s not just me who feels this way. I’ll make sure to ask her when she thinks she’ll be ready to take things to the next step and tell the others,’ Siyeon pondered as she walked.

Yoohyeon chewed at her lip. Siyeon was clearly excited about her romance with Sua. She hoped that the vocalist’s feelings for their main dancer would withstand what Sua would soon be telling her. Yoohyeon wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she was the reason that the two decided to end things. She wondered if she should she tell Siyeon herself and make it clear that it was all her fault? No, she figured it was best to stay out of it. After all, she had caused the problem in the first place by forcing her way into Sua’s business. Yoohyeon decided to make herself scarce before Siyeon noticed her. She crept past the other girl and ran down the hallway in the opposite direction.  
~  
Yoohyeon ran into Jiu and Handong, who had emerged from a nearby practice room. It looked like they had been polishing their “Troublemaker” stage for upcoming concerts. Both girls wore friendly smiles and called out a warm greeting. Yoohyeon wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone and risk finding out anymore life-shattering secrets, but the duo insisted that she come say hello.

“Kim Yoohyeon, you know it’s rude to ignore someone when they greet you!” Jiu chirped as she flagged the taller girl down.

“She’s right. What’s got you in such a hurry?” Handong added.

Yoohyeon frowned. She needed to come up with an excuse that would get them to let her leave. She was scared of accidentally outing Sua and Siyeon on top of her fear of discovering something else she had no business knowing about. She just wanted to hurry back to her study and work on reversing the spell. Telepathy was cool for a second but now she realized that getting inside people’s minds was too risky. The anger on Sua’s face when the older girl found out that Yoohyeon had invaded her privacy was enough to turn her off of mind-reading forever. She had to stop this before she found out the hidden secrets of all of her friends, family, and fans. People deserved the right to be alone with their thoughts.

“I’m sorry guys but I’m not really in the mood to talk. I have a lot of studying to do,” she lied.

“You’ve been studying all day, haven’t you? I walked by your room before Dongie and I left to practice, and you were hard at work hitting the books. You’re doing great, Yoohyeon! You don’t need to put so much pressure on yourself. Our fans are already amazed at how much you do for them. In fact, I cannot tell you how grateful I am that you handle so much of the international communications,” Jiu pointed out with a kind smile as she placed her hand on Yoohyeon’s arm.

Yoohyeon couldn’t help but be a little bit flustered at how warm Jiu’s eyes were when they gazed into hers. Despite being so busy herself, the older girl had thought to check in on her and was giving her a pep-talk. Their leader was such a kind person.

‘Ugh, seriously, Jiu always does stuff like this, meanwhile she insists that all of us play it cool and not tell Yoohyeon,’ Handong’s thoughts intruded on the moment.

‘Not tell Yoohyeon what? No wait, I can’t find that out. I don’t want to hurt anybody else. I’ve got to get out of here fast!’ Yoohyeon told herself as she desperately tried to think of a way out.

“Th-Thanks! I already took a break a little while ago and I’ll take another one soon. I’m just really on a roll right now with my studies. I hope you guys had a nice practice. Anyways, I’m off, so uh, bye!” she rambled before darting away.

Unfortunately, her body wasn’t as quick as her new mental ability. She heard Jiu’s voice call out as she was leaving, and it was something that rocked her world.

‘I’ve really got it bad, huh? I wish I could get rid of this stupid crush. I’m supposed to be the leader of the group, but all I’ve done is drag everyone into an uncomfortable situation because I’m so bad at hiding my feelings. At least Yoohyeon doesn’t seem to know. Maybe I’ll get over my crush on her soon enough and the others can stop keeping my secret,’ the older girl’s thoughts ran wild.

Dreamcatcher’s lead vocalist felt her legs turn to jelly and she froze on the spot. Her heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest from beating so hard. Had she heard that properly? Did Jiu just unintentionally confess to having feelings for her? Curse this power of hers! Why did she have to go and cast that darn spell? Jiu hadn’t meant to tell her any of this, yet now she knew all about the leader’s secret and had no idea what to do. She couldn’t just pretend to have never heard anything, could she? That would be dishonest and there was always the possibility of Sua, Dami, or Gahyeon telling the leader about what had happened. Jiu would probably figure out that Yoohyeon could have read her mind at any time. The right thing to do was to make her aware of what she knew. That plus, she wanted to do something about it. She didn’t like the fact that Jiu had shoved her emotions aside thinking it was for the sake of the group. She wanted to talk to the other girl about this, especially because hearing that Jiu had a crush on her made her feel less insecure about the feelings she had harbored for Dreamcatcher’s pink princess ever since they debuted together. Maybe this was her chance to finally come clean about all of that and find out if the two of them had a chance of being together. Filled with newfound hope and courage, Yoohyeon turned around and marched back over to Jiu.

“Actually, can we speak in private please? Excuse us, Dongie,” Yoohyeon breathed out as she quickly dragged the leader into the practice room she and Handong had recently vacated.  
~  
To say that Jiu was confused would be the understatement of the century. She was currently looking at Yoohyeon as if she had three heads. Yoohyeon realized that her behavior was bizarre, especially since the other girl had no idea about her newfound ability. Yoohyeon was incredibly nervous as she willed herself to look into the older girl’s eyes. She knew that the conversation they were about to have could change the dynamic of the band forever. Regardless of the outcome, Yoohyeon needed to address what she had heard in Jiu’s thoughts. She refused to let the other girl keep brushing her feelings aside. That plus, she wanted to know if she had a chance with Jiu. After all, it appeared that what each of them had thought of as a onesided crush was actually reciprocated by the other party. Jiu patiently waited for Yoohyeon to get whatever she needed to off her chest. Yoohyeon was grateful that the other girl wasn’t badgering her with questions as she would have expected her to do considering her unexplained behavior. Yoohyeon looked down at her hands and interlocked her fingers, twiddling them nervously as she spoke.

“So, um, we need to talk about an important discovery I’ve made. Before you say anything, I need to tell you something important. I cast a spell earlier because I wanted to make communicating with international fans easier and ended up giving myself the power to read minds. I was actually on my way to go reverse the spell when you and Dongie stopped me to say hello. I didn’t want to accidentally read your thoughts because this power already caused me to hurt someone today, and I didn’t want anybody else to suffer. Sadly, I couldn’t get away from you guys in time. I know about your feelings now. I am so sorry I didn’t warn you before this happened,” the taller member confessed shakily.

She paused to gauge how the other girl was taking the news. She wanted to take her time before launching into her own feelings on the matter, so as not to overwhelm her crush. She could see the horror in Jiu’s face as it dawned on the other girl that the feelings she’d kept secret for so long were now being brought to the surface. Jiu quickly jumped in, wanting to smooth things over before Yoohyeon continued.

“Oh gosh, Yoohyeon, please don’t worry about it. The mindreading part isn’t your fault. It’s not like you had much of a chance to warn us, and you were just trying to spare us from spilling anything we wouldn’t want you to know. Still, this is awkward, huh? I’m the one who should be apologizing. I’m sorry for putting you in this position. You don’t have to worry about it, okay? I’ll get over it. I hope I haven’t made you too uncomfortable to keep working with me. I promise we can pretend this never happened and keep focusing on Dreamcatcher’s success,” the older girl insisted with false enthusiasm.

‘Well, this sucks. How could I have been so careless? I have to fix this! Yoohyeon must be so uncomfortable right now. Why did I have to go and run my stupid mouth, er, brain? Ugh, Jiu, you idiot!’ Yoohyeon heard the leader scold herself.

Yoohyeon shook her head, “I can still read your mind, you know. Stop pretending everything’s fine and ignoring what you’re truly feeling, Jiu. Besides, if you would just give me a minute, I have something else important to confess,” she cut in before continuing, “We have known each other for years now. You remember how when we were trainees, you thought of me as shy? There was a reason for that. I was so damn awkward around you because you were so beautiful and I wasn’t sure how to properly function. I still feel the same way, even if we’ve gotten more comfortable with each other. Every day I’m reminded of what a beautiful person you are inside and out. I never let myself come to terms with this until now, but, I’m in love with you, Kim Minji.”

Jiu stood there with her jaw to the floor and an adorable expression of surprise on her face. Yoohyeon stared at her helplessly, a sheepish smile inching across her features. She wordlessly begged for the older girl to say something, anything. She knew there was no turning back now. Things would either go up from here or crash and burn to all hell.

“Oh Yoohyeon, do you really mean that? I don’t know what else to say considering you read my mind and probably know how crazy I am about you. For me, it started when Dreamcatcher debuted. I finally realized how much you’ve grown, and I was just struck by how hardworking and kind you are. I caught myself falling for you, and the other members picked up on it pretty quickly. I was scared that you would find out too and things would get weird, but maybe this is a sign that it can all work out!” she gushed, giggling and launching herself into the taller girl’s arms.

Yoohyeon smiled and rested her head on top of Jiu’s. The two stayed like this for several, sweet, uninterrupted minutes. Their time together was interrupted by Dreamcatcher’s other couple, Sua and Siyeon, noisily bursting into the room hand-in-hand.

“Aha, there you are, Kim Yoohyeon! I just wanted you to know that no thanks to you, Siyeon and I worked everything out and plan on telling the others about us later tonight,” Sua boasted. 

Sua’s eyes widened when she noticed that Yoohyeon was not alone. It looked like the leader got to be the second one to find out about their not-so-secret relationship. Her and Siyeon exchanged looks before directing their attention to the two girls in front of them. 

“Oh, Jiu, I didn’t see you there. Uh, are we interrupting something?” Sua commented.

Jiu’s smile widened as she spoke, “Wow, so you and Siyeon are actually dating! You know, I wondered about the two of you. Good to know my hunch was right. I’m so glad my babies can make each other happy. Anyways, if you were wondering about Yoohyeonie and I, we finally confessed!” she squealed.

Yoohyeon covered her ears as the main vocalist and main dancer erupted into loud cheers. She didn’t realize the other members were such big Jiyoo shippers. 

Jiu tried to calm them down, “Guys, guys, we weren’t officially dating or anything! We’re just trying things out to see where it goes from here,” she insisted.

Yoohyeon smiled at her new love interest. She had a feeling they would have nothing to worry about.  
~  
As the two couples were celebrating, the remaining members of Dreamcatcher eavesdropped at the door. Handong, Dami, and Gahyeon shared highfives, thrilled to see their ships sailing.

“I guess Yoohyeon finding out about you-know-what wasn’t so bad,” Gahyeon remarked to Dami who nodded.

“By the way, you gotta pay up, Dami. Sua and Siyeon may think they’re good at keeping secrets, but I could spot their relationship a mile away,” Handong gloated with a smirk.

Dami grumbled as she fished around in her pocket and handed her the money. Gahyeon smiled at the duo before returning her attention to the couples inside the room. A lot of things were changing, but things were certainly looking good. Sua and Siyeon were twirling each other around the room in a flurry of giggles, while Yoohyeon and Jiu were cuddling with one another shyly. Dreamcatcher’s youngest member smiled, happy for her friends.

“I can hear all of your thoughts from here, you know! I don’t think Sua and Siyeon will appreciate the fact that you bet money on whether they were together or not, Handong and Dami. As for you, Gahyeonie, I’m glad you think we’re cute but can you maybe give us some privacy?” Yoohyeon called out.

Sua and Siyeon immediately took off after Handong and Dami, angered by the news that their friends were making bets on their relationship. Gahyeon followed the four of them, eager to watch the fight. This left the newly formed couple alone once again. Yoohyeon gazed into Jiu’s warm eyes and found herself spellbound by the other girl’s beauty. She leaned in to kiss her, only for her lips to come into contact with the other girl’s hand.

“Not so fast, buster! I will kiss you after we fix this telepathic nonsense. I don’t need you knowing everything in my head,” Jiu teased.

“Well then, what are we waiting for? Let’s go find that spellbook!” Yoohyeon declared, racing off as fast as her long legs could take her.

Jiu giggled as her taller companion towed her along, glad that their feelings were out in the open. The two were unsure of what the future would hold, but they didn’t need a mindreader to tell them that they were both optimistic about what was yet to come.


	7. Stick it to 'Em

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is it bad that the title I came up with makes me want to giggle? Honestly, I think you'll know exactly what this chapter is about based on the title and the fact that it's Dami-centric. This one is more lighthearted than some of the past chapters and is a bit shorter than my latest trend of continuing to ramble ghghggh ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ Anyways, god bless everyone who shared content from Dreamcatcher's Latin American tour and their adventures in L.A. It has been a wonderful past few weeks for the girls and I was reminded that Insomnias are the best. ❤ Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

After several busy weeks touring Latin America culminating with an epic performance at Kcon in Los Angeles in the United States, Dreamcatcher were relieved to have a short break back home. They had enjoyed their time traveling in other countries and interacting with fans both new and old, but now it was time to reinvigorate themselves before they began working on their next album. 

All seven members were on a high from how well the performances and fanmeets had gone, but they were exhausted. The girls were currently lazing around their living room waiting for bedtime. Jiu was sitting on the couch with Yoohyeon’s head resting on her lap. The leader smiled to herself as she gently played with the other girl’s hair. Yoohyeon, who was as puppy-like as ever, was clearly enjoying the action. Sua and Siyeon sat beside the other couple, the main dancer seated on the main vocalist’s lap. Gahyeon was lying down on the floor in front of the couch, trying not to doze off. Handong shared the armchair next to the sofa with Dami who was reading a book before bed while the other girls went back and forth between staring at their phones in silence and chattering animatedly.

Yoohyeon found all of the English posts from people who had been at Kcon LA and spoke up, “Check out all of these comments about our Kcon performance. People loved the Havana choreography and it looks like we have some new fans to look forward to! Ooh, a lot of people said their favorite part was when we did ‘You and I.’ Dami, people keep talking about the stick again,” the lead vocal caught her same aged friend’s attention when she said her name.

“I’m glad they appreciate it. That damn stick almost got us into a lot of trouble,” she muttered as she remembered what had happened three months ago.

“Ah, yes, when you almost gave us a heart attack. I still can’t say I’m crazy about what you’ve done, but it has made us stand out,” Jiu reminisced.

The seven of them found themselves collectively flashing back to that fateful day...  
~  
If chaos could be summed up in one image it would be behind the scenes of Mcountdown. Staff members were running around like chickens with their heads cut off tying up loose odds and ends in order to produce a perfect broadcast while idols scrambled to look their best and be prepared to go onstage. The stage required just as much primping as the performers, so the tech crew and stylists were equally stressed as they worked on their assigned tasks. It went without saying that the idols appearing on the show were also under immense stress.

As part of the lineup for tonight’s stage, Dreamcatcher was about to debut their new title track “You and I”, and the girls were definitely nervous. The rehearsal had gone well earlier, but now it was time for the real deal. There was a studio audience out there waiting to watch them live along with the countless people tuning in from the internet. If anyone made a mistake, it would be broadcast raw and unfiltered for the world to see.

“Oh god, I think I’m gonna be sick. What if I screw up?” Yoohyeon groaned as she frantically repeated her lines in her head.

“Will you please relax? I’m sure you’ll do great. We’ve practiced this song so many times we can do it in our sleep,” Siyeon reassured the other vocalist.

“I’m with Yoohyeon. This is the debut stage and everyone knows first impressions are everything. I’m totally freaking out here! If we make too many mistakes, people will probably want nothing to do with us and we’ll become a laughing stock. The company will fire us and we’ll be broke and humiliated. Oh my god, now I’m gonna be sick!” Gahyeon worked herself up and began to breathe heavily.

“Thanks for that. I wasn’t that nervous before, but thanks to your little speech I’m about to lose my mind!” Sua scolded the youngest member who gave her an apologetic expression.

“Why did you have to say all of that, Gahyeon? Now I’m getting even more nervous,” Handong pouted as she held her stomach which was filled with butterflies.

“Can everyone please keep it together? We’re going to do great. We’ve performed on this exact stage plenty of times. Today won’t be any different. Everyone just chin up and power through, okay? We got this!” Jiu cheered as she gave each member a reassuring smile.

“That’s our leader,” Siyeon cooed, smiling at the older girl who smiled back.

Dami was completely tuned out from the conversation the other six members were having. She was trapped in her own thoughts, engulfed in her nerves. All she could think about was her rap. When staging the piece, the choreographer had a vision of Dami wielding a baton during her part and had her practice with one constantly. Dami’s bandaged hands were a symbol of how long she had spent working with the damn thing. Despite the long hours she had put in with the baton, she by no means felt ready to perform with it. She had had some good runs where the stick flitted through her fingers seamlessly, but she had had just as many incidents where it went haphazard and either injured her or fell to the ground. The choreographer encouraged her to use it today, but Dami was dreading it. She had more at stake than anyone else, no matter how much they complained. She was trying something new today and it would either get people’s attention in a good way or a very, very bad way. The other members could sense that she was fretting about all of this and looked at Dami worriedly.

“Lighten up please! You’re gonna do great, okay? We’ve watched you practice and you’ve worked your butt off. The fans will be able to tell, especially when you nail this performance,” Sua told her before throwing in a thumbs up.

Dami could see that the other members were concerned and didn’t want them to be thinking of her when they were under pressure as well. She faked a smile and put an arm around Yoohyeon’s shoulder.

“You’re right. I can totally do this. All of us can. Everyone should just focus on what they’re doing and not worry about anything else, right? That way we’ll be sure to give that audience one hell of a show,” she reasoned.

Everyone nodded. The sound of thunderous applause signaled that the group before them had finished their performance and it was almost their turn. The staff jumped into action, rearranging the stage for Dreamcatcher. Jiu corralled the girls into their usual pre-show formation so that they could do a quick chant to pump themselves up and then get the show on the road. Once they were ready, the staff herded the girls onto the stage and they got in position. All seven of them struggled to breathe as they anxiously waited for the lights to kick on and the music to start.

Dami took a deep breath from her spot behind Jiu. She focused on holding the other girl up for her opening pose. When the piano intro began, Dami launched Jiu upwards so that she could do her thing. From there, she got into the next formation and let her thoughts run. Thankfully, with a few comebacks under her belt, the choreography had started to become muscle memory for her. Practicing a dance still required immense effort, but everything fell together a lot easier than when she was new to performing. She could put her physical energy into dancing while her mental energy concentrated on her impending problem. She was going to have to deliver one hell of a performance, but her baton had a habit of doing its own thing and making her look like a fool. The last thing she wanted to do was embarrass herself and her groupmates by screwing up. Unfortunately, her company was expecting her to do the choreography as instructed and would be pretty pissed if she strayed from expectations. There had to be another way to do this that would put her more at ease while still pleasing the people in charge. Dami thought as hard as she could. 

An idea crept into her mind as they delved into the first chorus, which was right before her rap. She couldn’t do this, could she? The others would have a heart attack if they knew she was even considering this. Still, it was all she could come up with and she was running out of time. Desperation was about to drive her into doing something wild. She was supposed to be the voice of reason in the group, but this plan of hers was nothing short of crazy. Dami couldn’t believe she was actually about to go through with this. Gearing herself up, she stepped into center stage as the music transitioned to her part. ‘Here goes nothing,’ she muttered to herself, careful not to make her lips readable on-camera.

Dami made sure to captivate the audience with her facial expressions. She opened the rap as intensely as possible in order to catch people’s interest before the real fun began. She felt every beat in the music as her nervous heartbeat drummed along. She was really about to do the stupidest thing she had ever done. 

Taking a deep breath, she grabbed the stick from its spot nestled in the back of her shorts. Normally, she would have to discreetly pull it up as the choreographer had taught her to do. This time, though, she was going to make things a lot easier for herself and not have to worry about it taking too long to pop into place. Channeling her magic energy, she got the stick to pop out of its own volition and heard the audience gasp. They were clearly mesmerized by the smooth action, wondering how she had done it so easily. She smirked, feeding off of their reactions and building confidence. She had to be careful not to get cocky, because that might blow her cover. People would have trouble telling the difference between a strong performer and someone with powers, unless that person was too flashy. She couldn’t get crazy and risk putting herself and the others in danger.

She only used a fraction of her magic energy to make the stick weave seamlessly through her fingers as she finished her rap. The baton twirled around smoothly before landing firmly on the ground. Dami decided to take it home and drive her magic energy into the baton as she struck it down hard. The burst of magic caused the stage and camera to lightly shake and create a cool special effect. With that, she picked up the baton and walked away to make room for Sua to do her part. 

In her peripheral vision, she caught the other girls looking at her with widened eyes while still remaining in-character. They had seen what she had done and were probably ready to rip her a new one when they got offstage. She could tell that they were shocked that of all people, Dami was the one who had decided to break their rule of no magic in public. The only one who didn’t look ready to either strangle her or burst into tears was Siyeon whose eyes twinkled and lips twitched, clearly trying to hold back an amused laugh. Dami put the stick away and focused on finishing the performance as if nothing had happened. The other girls seemed to be doing the same, knowing that they couldn’t give the impression that anything was wrong or else people would pick up on it and start rumors. They would just have to hope that everyone thought Dami was an excellent entertainer and not capable of sorcery. 

Once they had finished the song and the lights blacked out, Dreamcatcher raced offstage so that the next group could queue up. The seven girls were congratulated by various staff members as they walked past, expressing how impressed they were by their performance. Each member thanked the staff for their kind words and hard work on their way to the spot where they were gathering for their usual post-performance meeting. Normally it would be a space for them to discuss what went well and what could be improved, but there was a bigger issue at hand now. Dami knew she was about to get chewed out, but she felt that it had been worth it. Looking at the audience, she had seen nothing but admiration and awe. No one seemed suspicious or frightened of what she had done. Those were good signs that they were enjoying the show and not planning to burn her at the stake. Dreamcatcher’s main rapper steeled herself as she stood in a circle with the other members who were all staring at her.

“Do I even have to say it? What were you thinking? I’m so shocked and disappointed in you, Dami. I would expect this from other members, but I really thought you were one of the more disciplined people here. How could you use magic onstage?” Jiu began to nag, careful to keep her voice down so any passerby wouldn’t hear.

“Seriously, what if someone with too much time on their hands slows the footage of you from tonight and creates a thread on the internet speculating that you’re a witch? Next thing you know, we’re a national sensation and people are demanding that we be thrown in the ocean tied to rocks or something!” Sua joined in.

“Aw come on, you two, lighten up! Dami was just trying to shake things up. I thought her performance was badass. That plus, she finally got that friggin’ baton to cooperate. I bet you no one is going to say anything except that Dreamcatcher is awesome,” Siyeon argued.

“How can you be so lighthearted about this? We all agreed not to use magic in public, especially not onstage! If anyone finds out our secret, there’s no telling what will happen. We have these rules for a reason, you know!” Yoohyeon countered.

Dami shrugged, “I get why you’re all upset with me. I would be livid if the roles were reversed and one of you had done this. Frankly, I should be being harder on myself for doing something so stupid, yet, I can’t bring myself to regret this decision. You guys have to understand, this was my first time using that stupid baton in front of an audience and I was so scared of blowing it that I took a huge risk. I realize that my decision could cost us a lot, but I’m fully prepared to accept the consequences on my own. I’ll do whatever it takes not to drag you all into it,” she insisted.

“Everyone’s acting like the entire world already knows our secret. Please calm down, you guys. For now we’re in the clear, so let’s keep it together. That way if a problem does arise, we can work together to solve it. It’s all gonna be okay!” Gahyeon butted in, smiling at her older friends and squeezing Dami’s hand.

“Weren’t you the one acting like the sky was falling earlier backstage? Anyways, thanks. I appreciate your support,” Dami chuckled, ruffling the youngest’s hair.

“The baby’s right,” Jiu conceded, “we don’t have a problem yet so there’s no reason to panic. Dami, I’m still disappointed in you, but I’m hopeful that we can pull this off and everything will be okay. Please be more careful next time.”

With that, the seven members made up and headed out to find their manager so that they could go home. 

The entire ride to their dormitory was filled with nervous chatter. None of their staff members seemed to suspect anything and were only filled with praise for Dami who had been the star of the show, according to them. The girls were on a high from their debut stage going so well, but were also anxious about the possibility of their secret getting out. So far everything seemed fine, but if they had learned one thing from being idols, it was that everyone could turn against you in a matter of moments. So far the reviews of their show and posts on social media had been nothing but positive, but that was always susceptible to change.

Once they were home, the girls crowded around any device with a screen at their dormitory. Everyone’s eyes were glued to social media reading comments from fans in Korea as well as all over the world. Anybody anywhere could catch onto what Dami had done and blow the lid on their secret. All it took was one person with sharp eyes and a mind that liked to run wild with theories. The girls almost lost their minds when Sua stumbled across a post from a fan that had gotten a lot of upvotes.

“Holy crap where did Dami pull that stick from? It’s almost like magic lol. She’s amazing!” Dreamcatcher’s second eldest read out loud.

Dami smirked, “Almost like magic. That’s funny. It looks like we’re in the clear, you guys. No one seems to think we’re actually witches. I really think I could pull this off as a regular thing,” she reasoned.

Just then, Dreamcatcher’s choreographer strode into the room looking thrilled. She gave her congratulations on a stellar performance and reminded the girls that she would be seeing them early tomorrow to sharpen the choreography and iron out any wrinkles that had come up during the first run-through with an audience. Before leaving, she turned her attention to Dami.

“Please do what you did at every performance and we’ll be golden. The audience was eating out of the palm of your hand! You killed it today and I want you to keep up the good work,” she told her before waving goodbye to everyone and heading out.

Dami turned to look at the others with an “I told you so” expression.

“You heard the woman. She said to do the same thing I did today for the rest of our stages. I can’t disappoint her,” she teased.

“Of course Dami’s the one who gets away with using magic onstage. This is so unfair!” Yoohyeon whined.

Dami chuckled and poked the taller girl’s face which had scrunched into a cute pout. Siyeon joined in on the laughter while the remaining members looked at each other exasperatedly. It looks like they were going to have to brace themselves for a rollercoaster of an era. Everyone had to admit, though, that at least it was Dami who was taking the risk. If anyone was capable of pulling this off, it was their bright bookworm and dancing prince.  
~  
The girls were brought back to reality when Siyeon stumbled on a comment from a fan that prompted her to cackle loudly. Everyone turned to look at the main vocal, including the girl on her lap. Siyeon grinned as she dictated what was on her phone screen.

“Dreamcatcher radiates big witch energy. Check out this video of her main rapper. That girl can perform really well,” the tweet read.

Soon everyone in the room had erupted into giggles. Dami’s face scrunched in her amused smile, obviously enjoying what the fan had said. They were clearly using the term “witch” in a joking way, but if only they had known how right they actually were. Dreamcatcher were magical beings bewitching new fans and bringing them into their mystical world. Dami was thrilled that she was able to be at the forefront of this, and would continue to work hard to earn more love and attention for the group. She had a feeling that for future eras, they would be able to pull off even more otherworldly feats. She looked forward to seeing what other magic they could make onstage together, both with and without their powers.


	8. Maknae Meltdown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello friends! Gahyeon finally gets her chapter. I have noticed that 99% of the fandom tends to write her as this pure angel but lbr she radiates evil maknae energy sometimes. I love her and she's my bby plus her smile can save the world, but she is not always as innocent as she seems. I decided to use that as my motivation to write this chapter. Ngl I cracked up A LOT while writing this chapter and it turned out so crack fic-y and memey fhfhg. I hope you enjoy! (Sidenote: How many group hugs can I incorporate into this fic and how many dumb magic puns can I make)

“Hi, Gahyeon here! I’m doing a vlive to tell all of you about how hard it is being the youngest member of Dreamcatcher. It may seem like I am the cute baby who everyone loves, but that’s just what the older members want you to think. In reality, they boss me around and pick on me all the time. I have been wronged, I am being bullied, this is against my civil rights-hey!”

Dreamcatcher’s youngest member had her briefest vlive ever cut short by her manager racing in and shutting off the camera. Gahyeon pouted when she realized that the staff had been monitoring the channel and had seen her go live. She was being silenced! The fans deserved to know what her life was really like. They had an image of the other members as being her doting mothers, when in reality they were more like her evil step sisters in a fairytale. Poor Gahyeon was the sweet princess who was bossed around and bullied by the older girls taking advantage of their power over her. It was so unfair! She had no way of exposing the truth because the manager had interrupted her rant.

“Gahyeon, please stop sneaking onto the channel to complain. This is the fifth time I’ve had to chase you down this week! Anyways, the others are waiting for you in the practice room. Please just go do your job, okay? We’ll treat you to a nice meal if you’re a good girl and work with everyone,” the manager bargained with her.

“Fine, I’ll go. Just remember that you are sending me off to be bullied,” Gahyeon huffed before stomping off to the practice room.

“That child, I swear,” the manager muttered under her breath and shook her head.  
~  
“Look who decided to grace us with her presence,” Dami teased as their youngest entered the room.

Gahyeon sulked as she sat down next to Yoohyeon who pinched her cheek.

“What’s with the pouty face? Is our little Gahyeonie having a mood swing? They grow up so fast, she’s acting like a teenager,” the taller girl joked.

“I’m only two years younger than you! Also, unlike you grandmas I’m still in my teens so doesn’t that make me a teenager?” Gahyeon shot back.

Everyone in the room gasped at her savagery. It was rare for Gahyeon to talk back like that. She had definitely pissed off the others with her attitude. The six older members exchanged conspiratory glances before returning their attention to the youngest who gulped nervously.

“Uh, sowwy I said that stuff. I’m having a bad day. I didn’t mean it!” Gahyeon acted as cute as she could to try and save her skin.

Jiu shook her head, “You’re adorable, but that won’t save you now. You sassed your elders and called us grandmas, therefore, you must pay,” she stated.

Handong grinned, “What do you suppose is a fitting punishment?” she wondered.

“I say we make her run laps!” Sua suggested.

“Come on, that’s so boring. We’re witches, for crying out loud! We should turn her into a cute baby animal or something,” Siyeon pointed out.

“Ooh, we could send her into one of my videogames! I’ve always wanted to try it, but I’m too scared to do it myself,” Yoohyeon proposed.

“You people are monsters! I’m not just going to stand here and take your bullying any longer!” Gahyeon cried.

“Whoa, chill out, kid. We’re just teasing you,” Dami reasoned.

“Yeah, Gahyeonie, no one’s going to make you do anything dangerous. Come on, we always mess around like this! How about you go buy us all drinks at the vending machine and we call it a day?” Jiu offered with a smile.

Gahyeon’s eyes widened. The vending machine was a long walk away, and they expected her to carry six drinks by herself? Not to mention they were probably going to make her use her own money again. She was almost broke from all the stuff her members had asked her to buy for them as their errand girl. No, not anymore. She was through with being treated like a child and being picked on for all her troubles. It was time for her members to get a taste of their own medicine.

“I have a better idea,” Gahyeon spoke up as she channeled her magic, “why don’t you all start listening to me for a change?” she smirked as she cast a spell which caused all of the girls to light up for a moment and then return to normal.

“You have some nerve!. What did you do to us?” Sua demanded.

Gahyeon had the perfect opportunity to test out her spell. She grinned and stuck a finger to her lips in the signature gesture for “Be quiet.” Sua’s eyes narrowed and she was ready to yell at the younger for her audacity, but suddenly her mouth closed itself and her voice was muffled. Everyone gawked at the smallest member who began to flail around angrily in addition to her muted yelling. Gahyeon cheered. Her spell had gone entirely according to plan.

“Haha, it worked! You see, my dear members, now I will be the one giving orders around here. As our lovely main dancer demonstrated, when I tell you to do something, you now have to do it. Right now I’m going to say no one can use their magic, because otherwise one of you will ruin my fun. I promise I’ll reverse the spell myself, but we’re going to keep it this way for a little bit so I can finally have my revenge on you all for picking on me!” the youngest member laughed evilly to complete her diabolical speech.

“The maknae’s snapped,” Dami whispered to the other girls who nodded their agreement.

“Who knew she was so evil under all of that cuteness?” Jiu observed.

Gahyeon scratched her head, “Anyways, I’ve gotta decide what I want to make each one of you do. I’ll give Sua a brief break since she was the first one I targeted. Hm, I’m kind of hungry. Jiu, how about you grab some of the food in your secret stash and give it to me?” she decided with a mischievous grin.

Tears welled in the leader’s eyes as her body moved against her will and headed over to the area where she hid her precious food. Jiu tried with all her might to stop herself, but her legs continued to move. She whimpered as she reached down and grabbed an armful of her favorite snacks and brought them to her tormenter. Gahyeon grinned as she took them from the other girl and began to sift through the goodies. She opened a package and enjoyed the contents while Jiu watched helplessly.

“That’s just cruel,” Handong whispered to Dami who nodded in agreement, both of them pitying the eldest.

“Gahyeon, I don’t mean to interrupt your snacktime since that looks incredible, but um, maybe we can talk this out? I can sense that there’s some tension here and I really think we should work this out,” Yoohyeon tried to reason with the youngest while comforting her girlfriend, who was crestfallen over the loss of her food.

“I’d love to, but last time I tried to tell you all to stop picking on me you just laughed in my face and told me to loosen up. You guys never take me seriously and this is my chance to get some revenge,” Gahyeon shot her down immediately.

“We’re sorry for making you feel bad, cutie pie! You know we love you, right?” Siyeon said in the cutest voice she could muster as she hugged the youngest member.

Gahyeon shook her head, “Acting cute and trying to reason with me won’t save you now. Hm, what should I have the two of you do? Decisions, decisions,” she mumbled to herself in thought before a brilliant idea struck her, “Ah, I know! Yoohyeon, Siyeon, I want you two to carry me.”

The vocalists gawked at each other but could do nothing. They found themselves marching over to the grinning, dark haired girl and hoisting her up. They placed her on their shoulders, forming a sort of throne fit for a princess. Gahyeon loved every bit of it. She smirked from her place above everyone else, loving the power she now had. Sua glared at her and yelled with her mouth closed, most likely cussing her out. Jiu continued to grieve for her lost snacks, weeping pathetically in the corner. Hanndong had taken over Yoohyeon’s task of comforting the older girl since the lead vocal had her hands tied at the moment. Dami tried to hide in the corner behind Sua, hoping that keeping quiet would protect her from the youngest member’s wrath. Unfortunately, Gahyeon noticed the rapper’s silence and looked at her with an expression that sent shivers down her spine.

“Our Dami is being awfully quiet. Don’t you want to join in on the fun? Hm, since I’m already being carried, I guess I could use some entertainment while I hang out up here. How about you and Handong have a sword fight with your batons?” she suggested with a smirk.

Dami and Handong gulped as they found themselves marching to the center of the room. Dami pulled out two rods from her pocket that she had been saving for their dance practice. It appeared that the choreographer was still not here yet to save them. Hopefully she would get there soon and stop this tyranny. Gahyeon clapped with delight as Dami and Handong began to wield their weapons in a battle. Siyeon and Yoohyeon winced in sympathy, still holding her up. Sua and Jiu watched the fight in silence, Jiu still grieving her food and Sua still unable to speak.

Both Handong and Dami had taken several whacks to the head, arms, and legs as a result of their fight and were getting sick of having to run around fighting like buffoons. Unfortunately, due to the spell cast by their so-called cutest member, they were unable to stop unless she said so. Gahyeon seemed to be enjoying the show of the two most reserved members making fools of themselves and showed no signs of stopping the madness anytime soon. The girls would just have to hope she would have a change of heart and release them.

“Gahyeonie, as much as I love being your throne carrier, my arms are seriously starting to kill me. Can we please take a break?” Yoohyeon asked sweetly as her arms trembled.

Gahyeon sighed, “Fine, but only because I don’t want you to drop me. Siyeon, Yoohyeon, please put me down,” she ordered.

Once they had done so, Yoohyeon subtly made her way over to Siyeon, Jiu, and Sua. Gahyeon’s attention was focused on Dami and Handong’s continuing battle, which gave her the perfect opportunity to share the plan she had come up with. Dreamcatcher’s tallest gathered the trio who weren’t occupied at the moment into a huddle so she could explain her thoughts.

“Guys, we have to put an end to this torture, and I thought of a way to do it. Everything she tells us to do probably forces us to take it literally, right? All we have to do is annoy her enough that she says something that could be dangerous if taken literally and then she’ll have to reverse the spell. Gahyeon may be having some kind of evil genius crisis right now, but she’s still our baby and she would never let us get seriously hurt. If we make this a team effort, she’ll get annoyed at us sooner. Are you guys in?” Yoohyeon told them.

Sua nodded and gave her roommate a thumbs-up, unable to voice her agreement with the plan. Jiu and Siyeon copied her actions, mostly to avoid arousing Gahyeon’s suspicion. The kid was smart and this was the only plan they had to stop her. If she caught on, it was game over.

“Wow, who knew Yoohyeon would be the one coming up with a smart idea? That’s usually Dami’s job,” Siyeon chuckled.

“Hey, I resent that statement. I have plenty of brilliant ideas,” Yoohyeon huffed indignantly.

“You know I love you, but I have to agree with Siyeon. As the leader of this group, everytime you say you have a plan, I lose a few years off my lifespan,” Jiu giggled, ruffling her pouting girlfriend’s hair affectionately.

“You four are awfully chatty over there. Well, I guess you three are since Sua’s a bit tongue-tied at the moment. What are you up to?” Gahyeon demanded, turning her attention to the quartet in the corner.

“WhAT aRe YoU uP TO?” Siyeon imitated the popular mocking Spongebob meme, eager to commence operation “Annoy Gahyeon Until She Messes Up and is Forced to Reverse the Spell.”

Sua imitated the main vocalist’s pose, unable to use her voice to help, but trying to use her body to make up for it.

Gahyeon frowned, “Are you seriously using a meme in real life?” she criticized.

“By the way, Dami and Handong, you two can stop now,” she added as an afterthought, much to the duo’s relief.

“I’ll have you know, memes are hilarious. I guess it just takes people with a good sense of humor to understand and enjoy their execution,” Yoohyeon sassed the younger, joining Siyeon in initiating her plan.

While Gahyeon glared Yoohyeon down, Jiu took the distraction as a chance to race over to Dami and Handong and explain the plan to them. The Chinese member and main rapper were also surprised that Yoohyeon had been the one to come up with a decent idea, but were totally on-board nonetheless.

“She’s right, you know. You don’t have the culture to appreciate a good meme. Where did we go wrong in raising this little one?” Dami lamented, trying to sound as condescending as possible in hopes of striking a nerve.  
“Do you guys really think it’s a good idea to pick on the person with all of the power? You can’t use your magic to defend yourselves you know,” Gahyeon warned them, clearly getting annoyed.

Everyone collectively shrugged and smirked. Their plan was definitely starting to work since they had both the power of numbers and plenty of experience in annoying the youngest.

“You’re too cute to hurt us. You’re just a wee little thing. We aren’t afraid of you,” Jiu cooed in a baby voice, pinching Gahyeon’s cheek.

Gahyeon puffed her cheeks out angrily at the treatment she was receiving. Considering how scary she had been since casting her spell, the action was incredibly cute. The six older members collectively made an “Aww” noise at the sight. Well, in Sua’s case, it was more of a muffled noise that resembled an “Aww” noise.

“Will you all cut it out? This is exactly why I got so mad earlier. I’m sick of being treated like a little kid!” Gahyeon whined.

“Well, I would say casting a spell to make people do whatever you tell them to is not exactly grown-up behavior,” Handong retorted.

“You’re right, she really is just having a giant temper tantrum. What a grumpy baby,” Yoohyeon chimed in, shaking her head.

“A cute grumpy baby!” Jiu giggled.

“Does the grumpy baby need a nap?” Siyeon teased in a cutesy voice, sneering at the youngest who looked like she was about to snap.

“Oh honestly, you can all go to hell!” Gahyeon finally yelled.

At the girl’s words, a giant vortex opened in the middle of the room. Flames shot up from it and anguished screams could be heard inside. Everyone’s eyes collectively widened as they realized what Gahyeon had just done. The six older members began to panic (Sua’s screams stifled by her closed mouth) as their legs marched them towards the vortex which likely led to the lovely place Gahyeon had told them to go to. Gahyeon clutched her face in shock and began to freak out as well.

“Oh no, oh no no no no. I didn’t mean it! Please don’t listen to me, I’m just a kid. You guys can stay here, really!” she cried.

Her panicked yelling did nothing and the others were still headed for the ominous vortex. They all stared at her in a mixture of fear and anger as they continued towards their doom.

“Gahyeon, I swear, if you don’t fix this, you will be hearing from my lawyer. I bet there are a lot of them in hell!” Handong yelled.

“Gahyeonie, please just reverse the spell before we all spend an eternity in damnation,” Jiu asked in a tone so pleasant it made the whole situation seem harmless.

“Okay, okay fine!” Gahyeon surrendered before quickly activating her magic and reversing the spell.

Thankfully, their youngest member was quick on her feet and a talented sorceress. The vortex immediately dissipated, and the girls were free. Sua let out a cheer at finally being able to make noise again. Gahyeon breathed a sigh of relief that she would not be going solo while the others spent the rest of their lives in purgatory. Her relief was short-lived, however, when the older six surrounded her with menacing expressions. She gulped and waited for the punishment she was about to receive. She knew she deserved it-she had gone too far.

“Well, do you have anything to say for yourself?” Dami demanded.

Gahyeon’s lip wobbled before she burst into big, ugly sobs. She ran into everyone’s arms and pulled them in for a group hug.

“I’m really, really sorry! I don’t know what came over me. I guess I was just sick of being picked on and lost it. I am just glad you’re all okay. I was really, really bad!” she blubbered.

The older girls wanted to stay angry at the youngest, but they just couldn’t resist her cuteness. They had been awfully tough on her ever since debut. They had thought of it as just messing with the little one, but it clearly got to her. Between that and how hectic their schedules had been, she was probably too stressed to be rational. They couldn’t help but relinquish their anger and focus on comforting the crying girl.

“It’s okay, kiddo. We shouldn’t have been so hard on you. Next time, let’s talk about our feelings, okay?” Jiu suggested.

“You’re okay, kid. Just don’t ever try to silence me again or I won’t hesitate to summon that vortex to hell for you,” Sua joked, punching the younger girl’s shoulder gently.

The other girls chuckled as they all hugged their youngest and wiped her tears. Gahyeon couldn’t help but smile too. She was lucky to have such forgiving older sisters. Even if they could be a real pain, they had done a lot for her. She truly was grateful for each and every one of them.

“Thanks, guys. You’re all the best. I really do appreciate all of you and I hope we can all be together for a long time even if we fight sometimes,” she expressed.  
The girls smiled at the youngest’s sentiment and gathered together for one last group hug. As they were all sharing the warm and fuzzy feelings, the choreographer arrived. She was about to announce her presence and apologize for being late, but saw that the girls were having a moment. She smiled and decided to give them privacy.

“Those girls sure do love each other. The bond they have is pretty magical,” she mused to herself as she walked away.


	9. Which Witch is Which? Pt 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello friends! I wanted to thank you for 28 kudos and 400+ views! I am so glad people seem to be enjoying the fic. <333 You can probably guess what this chapter is about based on the tags and the title. I broke it into two parts because this baby turned out LONG! Anyways, I hope you enjoy and let's all look forward to Alone in the City! I'm so excited :D

The seven members of Dreamcatcher sat in a circle on the floor, awkwardly staring at each other. Jiu was at the head of the group, smiling a bit too hard at everyone for their liking. You see, they were in this position at their leader’s behest. The group was currently working on their next album and it would not be long before they would have to spend a lot of time together perfecting their choreography, having fanmeets, and doing other group promotional activities. She had insisted that they needed to regroup and do some bonding before their next promotional cycle. Their company had been kind enough to give them all a break to wind down and get ready, but it had also meant that they spent some time away from each other. Jiu just wanted to make sure everyone was completely in-tune with each other and that there was no awkwardness between members that would impede the group’s ability to work together. This meant that she had made everyone come sit in her room for an impromptu bonding session.

Jiu clapped her hands together and greeted everyone, “Thank you all for coming to Dreamcatcher’s pre-comeback sisterhood session! Who’s ready for some team building?” she asked the room in a cheery tone.

“Uh, Jiu, you do realize that we all know each other, right? We’ve been working together for a while now. You’re acting like this is a classroom icebreaker or something,” Sua pointed out.

“Aw, don’t be such a spoil sport, Sua! Our sweet leader is working really hard to make sure we all get along and do our best, so let’s help her out. Keep talking, babe,” Yoohyeon defended her girlfriend.

Jiu beamed at the taller girl who shot her a wink complete with cheesy finger guns. The rest of the members shared disgusted reactions at the couple. Siyeon and Sua fake gagged, Gahyeon and Dami groaned, and Handong just gave the duo a judgemental look. The two lovebirds ignored their haters and kept making googly eyes at each other.

“Uh, are you going to tell us what we’re doing here or should we get you two a room?” Dami interrupted their lovey dovey moment.

Jiu coughed, “Right, I’m sorry. Well, um, I was thinking that since we have gained a lot of popularity with our latest comeback, there’s a ton of pressure on us to make this one even better. We need to reach a new level as a group, and it’s not going to be easy. You all know I normally advise us to keep idol things separate from magic stuff, but as our dear Dami proved during ‘You and I,’ it seems that it can really put us at an advantage if we play our cards carefully. That is why I am proposing a magic circle to synchronize our energies and make us work as one. It’ll make our choreography look even cooler and that plus it will have us bonded in our witchy sisterhood. Doesn’t that sound like a blast?” she explained, squealing the last part.

The leader looked out at the other six members as she tried to gauge their reactions to her idea. Everyone seemed to be processing what she was telling them. Some members appeared intrigued, while others looked apprehensive. She stared at all of them, eager to address any questions, comments, or concerns about her plan.

“Wait, you actually want us to use magic and we won’t get in trouble this time? Hell yeah! You know I’m already in no matter what happens!” Siyeon cheered.

Sua shook her head at her girlfriend’s carefree approach to the subject, “Siyeon, I don’t think you should be so quick to agree to this. Jiu, may I remind you of how risky it is to use magic in general, let alone harness the magical energy of seven people all at once? Who knows what will happen? As much as I’d love to see Dreamcatcher get more popular, I don’t think this is a good idea,” she objected.

Handong nodded, “I’m with Sua. You know I trust you as our leader, but this just sounds way too risky. We’ve never combined our magic before, and it could end in disaster,” she agreed.

“I’m sorry, leader, but I have to side with them. Experimenting with seven people’s magic sounds like a recipe for trouble. Maybe we could do something else to bond as a group instead, like go camping or something?” Gahyeon politely suggested.

“Oh come on, you three! You’re not giving Jiu enough credit. She had a creative idea to help take our group to the next level and all you can do is poop on it!” Yoohyeon objected, clutching onto her girlfriend protectively.

Gahyeon and Handong exchanged looks at this, and Sua made a whipping noise and gesture. Yoohyeon glared at them while Jiu patted her head in appreciation for her support.

“The whole thing sounds a little weird to me too, but I was the first one to break the no magic rule. I guess that means I sort of owe you since you’re the leader and it would have been your neck if I had screwed up,” Dami pointed out.

Jiu took in everyone’s commentary and gave them a reassuring expression. She could see where the dissenting opinions came from. After all, they were totally right. If anyone else had suggested what she was telling them to do, she would probably have said the same thing. Still, as the leader, this upcoming comeback was weighing on her heavily. She knew everyone else was stressed too, but she felt a special responsibility for the group’s success. If Dreamcatcher didn’t reach its fullest potential, then she failed as a leader. She wanted to guide the others in a direction that would take them to the top. She decided to confess these feelings in order to persuade them to take this chance with her.

“You guys, I totally understand why some of you aren’t on board with this plan. Normally, I would think it was crazy too. You see, the reason I think we should do this is because as the leader, it’s my job to take this group to the next level. I know it’s risky, but I have to focus on our success. It would mean a lot to me if you would all support me and give this a try. I promise that if anything bad happens, I’ll take full responsibility and make it right,” she told them.

The other members were moved by their leader’s words. They could see how much her job meant to her. Her sincere words seemed to win over the entire room.

Sua sighed, “You’ve always had a way with words. How can I possibly say no to you now? Seriously, though, if this ends badly I reserve the right to say ‘I told you so’ for weeks,” she warned.

Handong and Gahyeon nodded their agreement with the main dancer. They didn’t need to say anything to clarify that they were tentatively on-board with the plan. If anything went wrong, though, the leader would be hearing an earful from the trio. Dami seemed tempted to join them, but held her tongue. She probably knew that she had no room to judge her elder when she had been the one to go behind everyone’s back and use magic onstage.

“Well then, what are we waiting for? Everyone’s agreed to the magic circle. Let’s get this show on the road!” Siyeon urged.

Jiu chuckled, “Sounds like a plan! Since we’re already sitting in a circle, all we need to do now is hold hands and close our eyes. Each one of you will need to harness your magic and try to synch it with everyone else’s. It should be pretty easy to sense each other’s magic since we’ve been friends for so long. I have a feeling this will be done in a jiff and then we’ll be unstoppable together!” she urged everyone.

The girls did as they were told, and soon the room filled with light as each girl activated her magic. Everyone kept their eyes closed and focused on the task at hand. Each member could feel the magic of the others and worked to sync their energies. Due to the amount of magic in the air, the room was filling with an odd energy. It seemed as if everyone’s magic was feeding off of each other and amassing into a powerful unit. Suddenly, without warning, the light in the room swirled around before creating an explosion that knocked all seven members backwards. The seven of them remained on the ground unconscious for several minutes. Gahyeon was the first one to awaken, rubbing her head and pouting.

“Oww, my head! I don’t think that was supposed to happen. I’m sorry, I guess my plan flopped. Is everybody okay?” she asked the room.

She examined the others to make sure no one was seriously hurt. When her gaze fell on Jiu, who was still laying on the ground, her eyes widened and she let out a gasp.

“Is that me? Am I dead? Also, where’s Gahyeon? Did she get sucked into the magic circle? Oh god, I’m a ghost and Gahyeon is gone forever! This is my fault, I’m such a bad leader!” she began to cry.

Siyeon woke up and looked at Gahyeon confusedly.

“Gahyeon, why are you crying? Also, did you just call yourself the leader? Did the blast do something to your brain?” she judged.

Gahyeon gasped again, “Wait, Siyeon, did you just say Gahyeon? Is she here? Oh, thank goodness she’s okay! Where is she?” she questioned, looking around excitedly.

Siyeon frowned, “Okay, you definitely have brain damage. For one thing, you called me Siyeon. Secondly, Gahyeon is you and you are literally sitting right here,” she stated.

“Okay, Siyeon, I know you like to joke around, but this is just silly. I gotta say, I am worried about Gahyeon. I don’t see her anywhere. Did you two make a plan to prank me and make me think there’s two of me and that Gahyeon is missing? I wouldn’t put it past you two. Prank good ole Jiu and give her a heart attack, that’s pretty funny,” Gahyeon chuckled.

Siyeon’s eyebrows furrowed at the so-called youngest member’s words. She looked around the room to find the two Jiu’s she was supposedly talking about, and instead her eyes landed on Handong’s unconscious form. A string of curse words left the main vocalist’s mouth.

“Well, I think I can tell you what happened. It looks like the magic circle made us all switch bodies. I’m actually Handong, but based on my observations and what you just told me, I’m in Siyeon’s body. Jiu, the reason you don’t see Gahyeon is because you’re her at the moment,” she explained to the other girl who cried out in surprise.

Yoohyeon shot awake, “Who’s screaming? What’s going on? Did the magic circle work? Something tells me getting knocked out wasn’t part of the plan. Ugh, I’m going to give Jiu a piece of my mind when she wakes up!” the girl ranted until her eyes fell on Sua, “Holy shit, is that me? How am I over there and over here at the same time? What’s going on?” she demanded.

The real Jiu and Handong (trapped in Gahyeon’s and Siyeon’s bodies) exchanged looks. Jiu gave her angry friend a sheepish smile.

“Um, hi there, Sua! Well, uh, you see, it looks like we somehow all switched bodies. So, uh, you’re actually not who you think you are at the moment. You’re in Yoohyeon’s body. I’m actually Jiu in Gahyeon’s body, and Handong is over there in Siyeon’s. We just woke up and figured this out a moment ago,” the leader confessed.

Sua’s eyes widened as she looked down to confirm the other girl’s words. She gawked at her much larger hands and looked back up at Jiu (who had Gahyeon’s face) angrily. She lunged at the other girl and grabbed her by the shirt collar.

“I told you this wasn’t a good idea! I can’t believe you made us all switch bodies! You’d better know how to fix this!” she yelled.

“Please don’t hurt me! I don’t want to be beaten up with my girlfriend’s fists! Besides, it’s Gahyeon’s body you’d be damaging!” Jiu pleaded.

Handong shook her head, “Will you both calm down? Let’s just wait for the others to wake up and discuss how to fix this,” she reasoned.

“Wow, it’s weird to hear Siyeon being the voice of reason,” Sua muttered, looking at the person in her girlfriend’s body apprehensively.

“Yeah, and it’s weird to see Yoohyeon being so scary,” Jiu added which made Sua return her attention to glaring at her.

As the girls were talking, Dami’s body woke up and stared at them. First, she noticed that “Yoohyeon” was glaring at “Gahyeon” and holding her up by the shirt collar.

“Whoa, kids, why are you fighting? Did something happen? Usually you two get along so well,” she pondered, talking as if she was older than both of them.

The main rapper’s eyes grew wide when she saw Handong in Siyeon’s body. She jumped up from her spot on the ground and lunged at her, tackling her to the ground.

“Where did you come from, clone freak? I must have accidentally summoned you in the magic circle. You’re going to try and steal my identity and that’s why you knocked me out, isn’t it? Take that, you demon!” she yelled, putting Handong into a chokehold while Sua and Jiu gawked at the sight.

“Well, that’s gotta be Siyeon,” Sua declared with Jiu nodding in agreement.

“Of course it’s me, Yoohyeon! Come on, help me defeat this evil clone before she destroys us all!” Siyeon confirmed as she continued beating up Handong who flailed her arms in surrender.

“Wait, Siyeon, stop attacking her! That’s not a clone. We all switched bodies because of my stupid magic circle idea. That’s Handong trapped in your body. I’m Jiu trapped in Gahyeon’s, and Sua is the one in Yoohyeon’s body. You’re actually in Dami’s body right now,” the leader intervened, running to pull her off of Handong.

“Wait, seriously?” Siyeon cried, grabbing Dami’s phone from her pocket to use her phone camera.

“Whoa, I really am in Dami’s body! That explains why my voice sounds lower. This is so cool, magic is awesome!” the main vocalist cheered as she gawked at her new face.

Sua smiled at her girlfriend, “Of course you would be okay with this. I was ready to kill Jiu when I found out,” she told her.

“It’s true, I’ve never seen Yoohyeon’s face look so angry. My entire life flashed before my eyes,” Jiu shuddered.

“My life flashed before my eyes when you tried to kill me just now. Seriously, what the hell, Siyeon?” Handong scolded the other girl who smiled apologetically at her.

“Hopefully the others wake up soon so we can figure out this situation,” Jiu changed the subject as she looked at the three remaining bodies on the floor.

“I’m curious to see who was blessed enough to end up in my body,” Sua threw in, flipping Yoohyeon’s hair.

Handong rolled her eyes, “I think you mean who was cursed to be stuck in your body,” she scoffed.

Sua raised her fist, “Want me to finish what Siyeon started?” she threatened.

Siyeon giggled, “Calm down, Sua. Whoever is in your body is very lucky. I would know,” she teased with a wink.

Sua blushed at her words while Handong made a fake gagging noise. Siyeon made a flirty face at her girlfriend which prompted Jiu to step in.

“Whoa there, tiger! Sua has Yoohyeon’s face at the moment so if you flirt with her, it looks like you’re hitting on Yoohyeon and I’m not sure how I feel about that,” she complained with a pout.

“Did someone say Yoohyeon? Ugh, I feel like I just got tackled by a football player. What’s going on?” Handong’s body asked, sitting up from her spot on the floor.

“Holy mother of pearl, why are there two of me?” she gasped when she saw Sua.

“Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me. The giant meme is in my body,” the real Handong groaned.

“What are you talking about, Siyeon?” Yoohyeon inquired.

“Yoohyeonie, you’re here! It’s me, Jiu! Everybody switched bodies and you’re in Handong’s. The real Handong is in Siyeons, Siyeon is in Dami’s, and Sua is in yours. We’re still waiting for the real Dami and Gahyeon to wake up. They must be in me and Sua’s bodies,” Jiu told her girlfriend as she ran to hug her.

Yoohyeon’s eyes widened as she tried to process the information, “Wow, that is a lot to take in. Does anybody have any idea of how to fix this? I mean, no offense babe, but your plan did not work out well. This is not an ideal situation. We can’t perform like this!” she freaked out.

“I know, I know, I screwed up. Don’t worry, though, we’ll fix this and everything will be okay. I’ll figure something out,” Jiu reassured the other girl, squeezing her hands and giving her a peck on the nose.

“I totally believe in you, babe. You’re like, the best girlfriend ever and super smart. You totally got this! Also, just saying, Gahyeon is already cute but you manage to make her even cuter,” Yoohyeon cooed, nuzzling their noses.

“Wow, you and Gahyeon would make a cute couple,” Siyeon remarked to the real Handong who was blushing at the scene.

“If you two lovebirds would focus, we need to wake those sleeping beauties over there so that we can figure out how to get back to normal,” Sua chimed in.

“No worries, babe, waking people up is my specialty. Watch this,” Siyeon proclaimed before shrieking like a banshee.

The noise jostled both unconscious members awake, and nearly gave everyone a heart attack. Siyeon grinned, rubbing her (technically Dami’s) hands together at her job well done.

“I didn’t know Dami was capable of making such a noise. I guess that’s the talent of our main vocalist. Even in somebody else’s body she can still reach those high notes,” Yoohyeon complimented.

“For crying out loud, who is making all that noise? What is wrong with you people?” Jiu grunted, rubbing her eyes as she adjusted to the light.

“That’s Dami,” everyone agreed simultaneously.

“Guys, who screamed just now? You almost gave me a heart attack! Please don’t do that again,” Sua whined adorably as she clutched her chest.

“And that’s Gahyeon,” they declared.

“Will somebody tell me what the hell is going on? Is that me? What did you guys do? Did one of you knock me out and clone me so that I’d freak out? Not cool!” Dami yelled, pointing at Siyeon.

“Eek! I see myself over there too! This is so creepy!” Gahyeon shrieked.

“Dami, Gahyeon, please calm down. I know this situation is super weird, but let me explain. You see, it’s me, Jiu. The magic circle somehow switched our bodies and everyone is stuck inside someone else. Dami, Siyeon is in your body and you’re in mine. Gahyeon, you’re in Sua’s body,” Jiu told the freaked out duo.

“Also, just so you know, I’m Yoohyeon and I’m in Handong’s body. Handong is in Siyeon’s body, and Sua is in mine,” Yoohyeon clarified.

“Holy shit,” Dami breathed, Gahyeon nodding her agreement with the other girl’s sentiments.

“So, now that we’re all awake, how should we go about fixing this? Does anyone have any ideas?” Handong asked.

“I bet that book we have has some kind of reversal spell for this. I can look through real quick and see,” Dami told her, snapping her fingers to make the book appear.

Everyone watched her and waited. Dami frowned and tried snapping again. The book still didn’t appear. She looked at the group with a panicked expression.

“Guys, I don’t think we can use magic while we’re like this,” she whispered.


	10. Which Witch is Which? Pt 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As promised, here's the part two to the bodyswap chapter :)

_“Dami, Gahyeon, please calm down. I know this situation is super weird, but let me explain. You see, it’s me, Jiu. The magic circle somehow switched our bodies and everyone is stuck inside someone else. Dami, Siyeon is in your body and you’re in mine. Gahyeon, you’re in Sua’s body,” Jiu told the freaked out duo._

_“Also, just so you know, I’m Yoohyeon and I’m in Handong’s body. Handong is in Siyeon’s body, and Sua is in mine,” Yoohyeon clarified._

_“Holy shit,” Dami breathed, Gahyeon nodding her agreement with the other girl’s sentiments._

_“So, now that we’re all awake, how should we go about fixing this? Does anyone have any ideas?” Handong asked._

_“I bet that book we have has some kind of reversal spell for this. I can look through real quick and see,” Dami told her, snapping her fingers to make the book appear._

_Everyone watched her and waited. Dami frowned and tried snapping again. The book still didn’t appear. She looked at the group with a panicked expression._

_“Guys, I don’t think we can use magic while we’re like this,” she whispered._

~

“What do you mean we can’t use magic? You’ve got to be kidding. Here, let me try,” Sua protested, trying to summon the book.

Dami folded her (Jiu’s) arms across her chest and watched Sua attempt the spell multiple times with no luck. She shot the girl an “I told you so” look. Sua scowled and gave up.

“Maybe it’s just that spell that isn’t working? I’ll try another one,” Gahyeon suggested, only to find that her efforts were also in vain.

“No good. I was going to make some snacks appear because I’m starving, but as you can see, that didn’t work. Crap, we really can’t use magic. We’re doomed!” the youngest (now technically second oldest) wailed.

“Gahyeon’s right. If we can’t use magic, how can we expect to fix this? What if we’re stuck like this forever?” Handong gasped.

“We have to keep promoting, I mean, Dreamcatcher is our entire life. We can’t just give up and let our fans down. That plus, we would have no way to explain what happened without outing ourselves as witches. I guess we’ll just have to learn each other’s parts and how to act like each other if it comes to it,” Sua answered.

“You mean I’d be stuck being the leader of this circus? Oh, hell no! Jiu’s nice to everyone all the time. I can’t do that. That plus she never cusses and is always perky. This is like my personal hell,” Dami realized, clutching her (Jiu’s) head.

“If we’re trapped, then that makes me the main vocal. Siyeon has so many lines, how am I supposed to learn them all? Not to mention, does this mean I’m stuck doing that stupid alien aegyo and the wolf thing? Oh god, please don’t make me do the wolf thing. Someone just put me out of my misery!” Handong cried.

“Hey, the wolf thing is awesome and my alien aegyo is not stupid! Haters are my motivators,” Siyeon objected.

“And that is who is currently inhabiting my body. My image is ruined,” Dami groaned.

“You guys are mean! Besides, I for one am kinda looking forward to this. Sure I’ll miss being main vocal, but rapping sounds fun. That plus I get to do the cool stick thing when we perform ‘You and I.’ Ooh, I wonder if I can try it now?” Siyeon mused, searching Dami’s pockets for the practice baton.

“Don’t you dare injure my body!” Dami warned as the other girl grabbed the object and began to play with it.

“I guess Siyeon’s right, it might be kind of fun to be someone else for a little bit. I have always wanted to master other member’s parts in our songs, and Yoohyeon’s are pretty cool. That plus, I’ve always wondered what it’d be like to kiss myself,” Sua thought aloud, ending her speech with a wink thrown in Gahyeon’s direction.

“Don’t you dare!” Jiu, Yoohyeon, Siyeon, and Gahyeon all shrieked simultaneously.

“Aw come on, why not?” Sua pouted.

“You can’t kiss me! You have a girlfriend and it’d be weird,” Gahyeon said with a blush.

“Exactly, you have a girlfriend,” Siyeon hissed menacingly.

“Also, in case you forgot, that’s MY body you’re in! I don’t want my lips touching anybody’s except Jiu’s!” Yoohyeon huffed which made Jiu smile and run to hug her.

“Ugh, fine, I won’t kiss my body even though I want to,” Sua sulked.

“Anyways, if we’re talking about being stuck like this, I’m kinda worried too. I’ve been practicing my Chinese, but there’s no way I’m as good as Dongie. We can’t just suddenly have Siyeon as our Chinese spokesperson. I’ll have to hit the books hard,” Yoohyeon decided.

“Honestly, I’m freaking out. I have no idea how I’m going to pull off being the main dancer!” Gahyeon worried.

“I’m sorry you all got put in this position because of me. I promise I will work to figure this out, with or without magic. Hopefully we’ll be able to return to normal. I want you all to know that I am going to work as hard as I can to fix this situation I caused. Please keep your chins up, okay? We can handle this,” Jiu tried to comfort everyone, being the good leader she is.  
“On the bright side, I finally get to experience being the youngest!” she added to cheer everyone up, bouncing around cutely in Gahyeon’s tiny body.

The others couldn’t help but smile at how cute she was. Even though they were scared and frustrated, they trusted their leader. She would do everything in her power to solve this problem, and they knew they needed to help her in any way they could. In the meantime, they would have to get used to being each other.

“If I say that was the cutest thing ever, does it mean that I’m calling myself cute or Jiu?” Gahyeon wondered.

“Both you and Jiu are adorable, but we have a serious situation to focus on here. We have a lot of schedules coming up and we’re releasing a new album. We’re going to have to learn each other’s parts for all of our songs and handle the new songs on top of it. That’s going to require a lot of practice time if we want to get this right. Our fans and our company can’t suspect a thing. We have to be able to think, speak, and act like the person whose body we’re in. We basically have to become different people,” Dami lectured the group.

“When you put it that way, it becomes a lot less fun. Like, if I have to be Dami, then will I really even know who I am anymore?” Siyeon mused softly, her face showing signs of distress.

“Of course you’ll still be Siyeon underneath it all. Even if you start to lose sight of who you are, I’ll always be there to bring you back,” Sua reassured her girlfriend, grabbing her hand.

Siyeon looked up at the other girl and smiled. Even though it was Yoohyeon’s face looking at her, she could still feel Sua’s warm presence. She squeezed her hand for reassurance and the two shared a loving gaze.

Dami coughed, “Ahem, as touching as this moment is, please don’t get too mushy with each other when you’re in other people’s bodies,” she requested.

“Yeah, it’s weirding me out to see myself looking at Dami the way I look at Jiu and limited edition video games,” Yoohyeon agreed.

“Not to be rude, but why are we all sitting here chitchatting? As Dami pointed out, we are going to need a ton of time to memorize each other’s parts in our songs as well as learn how to act like each other. We should really get to the practice room,” Handong cut in.

“Dongie’s right. Let’s go everybody!” Jiu herded everyone out of her room so they could get to work.  
~

If anyone were to walk into Dreamcatcher’s practice room, they would see seven girls working themselves hard as they ran over their songs over and over again. Anybody who was familiar with the group would know that was something was off. The girls were all getting used to handling each other’s parts and performing in different bodies. Sua, for example, had to get used to having Yoohyeon’s much longer limbs and had accidentally hit a few of the girls in the face when getting too into the choreography. Siyeon had accidentally whacked herself and several other members with the baton when practicing Dami’s rap in “You and I.” Handong was not used to popping off high notes like Siyeon, and Dami was getting used to being a singer again. Jiu and Yoohyeon were doing pretty well, except for “Fly High” when Yoohyeon couldn’t get the timing of Handong’s part and Jiu accidentally went flying into the wall when practicing Gahyeon’s twirl. Gahyeon was doing her best, but being the main dancer was proving to be a daunting task for her. She had kicked a few members on accident during “Fly High” and got herself stuck on the floor when she laid down for Sua’s part in “Chase Me.” After practicing several times, all seven of them collapsed on the floor in need of a break.

“Good work, everybody! I can tell you’re all working really hard. Let’s take a quick break and keep trying!” Jiu panted.

“Maybe we should try acting like each other while we take a break from practicing our songs?” Yoohyeon suggested to which the other girls nodded.

Jiu nodded, “That sounds like a great idea, babe! Oops, I guess I should stop calling you babe if I’m Gahyeon and you’re Handong,” she giggled.

“Um, actually, that’s fine with me if it’s okay with Gahyeon,” Handong consented quietly with a blush.

Gahyeon blinked, surprised by the other girl’s words, “Um, y-yeah, it’s okay with me too,” she stammered, her (Sua’s) cheeks reddening as well.

“Oh my god, we are so cute when we act shy!” Sua squealed to Siyeon who smiled back at her.

“So, who wants to go first?” Jiu asked the room.

Dami raised her hand, “I’ll start since I’m technically the leader right now,” she offered before clearing her throat and stating, “Hello, I’m Dreamcatcher’s leader and pink princess, Jiu! To our wonderful fans who have helped us along the way, please continue to give us lots of love and support. We love you!” she sang out in the cutest voice she could muster, cringing when she was finished.

Jiu burst into applause, “That was amazing, Dami! I’m so impressed,” she gushed.

“Thanks. I kind of want to die now, but at least I did a good job,” Dami replied, hiding her (Jiu’s) face in her hands.

“Okay, my turn! I’m an excellent actress. Hi everyone, I’m Dreamcatcher’s lead vocalist and puppy-like Yoohyeon,” Sua struck a cute pose before continuing, “I love learning languages and am pretty good at it. I’ll show you sometime when I can remember the words, hehe. Anyways, I’m a huge gamer and I love that game with the shooting and the catchphrases-”

“It’s called Overwatch! I only talk about it like all the time. Come on!” the real Yoohyeon whined, cutting her off.

“Your Yoohyeon impression could use some work, but overall that wasn’t too bad. Let the master go next,” Siyeon cut in, standing up.

“Hello, I’m Dreamcatcher’s main rapper and dancing prince, Dami. I enjoy reading, I love pandas, and please don’t ask me to act cute because it gives me hives. That’s all, thank you,” she declared in a deep voice.

“Okay, you don’t need to sound like Darth Vader, otherwise, I have to admit that was pretty good,” Dami complimented.

“Ooh, okay, my turn, my turn!” Jiu bounced up and down, “Hello, I’m Dreamcatcher’s youngest and cutest member, Gahyeon! I love to eat and do math and laugh like Spongebob! You should make me smile because my smile is the prettiest sight in the whole wide world. Anyways, I love you!” she gushed, throwing in an adorable smile and wink at the end of her speech.

The entire room melted at her performance, except for Gahyeon who was embarrassed to watch herself act so nauseatingly cute. Siyeon, Yoohyeon, and Sua squealed and raced to hug the leader (trapped in the youngest’s body). Handong and Dami found themselves unable to stop smiling, their eyes twinkling.

“That was really nice, but can you tone it down just a tad? I never realized how awkward it would be to watch myself act like that,” Gahyeon pleaded.

“Okey dokey!” Jiu chirped, prompting the room to erupt into squeals once again.

“Now that we all know my girlfriend is the cutest person in the entire world, I’ll go next,” Yoohyeon announced before rattling off some Chinese, “Hello, I’m Dreamcatcher’s Chinese member and funny girl, Handong! Thank you for loving me and Dreamcatcher!” she spoke with ease.

“Very good! I think people would believe that was me,” Handong praised.

“Nice!” Yoohyeon cheered as she pumped her fist in victory.

“Yeah, leave that part out,” Handong deadpanned.

“Well, Handong and Gahyeon, you two still have to go. Which one of you wants to go first?” Dami took over, trying to be as much like Jiu as possible.

“Ooh, you should go, Handong! I wanna see your impersonation of me,” Siyeon decided.

“Very well,” Handong sighed, “Awoo! I’m Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist and wolf, Lee Siyeon. I love to rock and roll!” she forced herself to say in an energetic tone in addition to making Siyeon’s usual howling noise.

“Aw, come on! You can give it more energy than that. That wolf howl sounded like it was dying,” Siyeon critiqued.

“Well, maybe that’s because you should let it die!” Handong retorted, looking humiliated.

“Okay, okay, no need to fight. Handong, just keep your chin up and keep practicing, okay? Last but not least, it’s Gahyeon’s turn!” Jiu chimed in, turning all of the attention to their youngest (who was technically not the youngest at the moment.)

“I can do this,” Gahyeon told herself, clenching her (Sua’s) fists as she cheered herself on.

“She’s way too cute to pull this off. I’m excited to see how it turns out,” Sua murmured to Siyeon with a grin.

Gahyeon bent down to the ground before rising up seductively and striking a pose. Everyone in the room nearly choked on air, especially Sua.

“Hello, I’m Dreamcatcher’s queen, Sua. I’m in charge of dancing, cooking, crafts, and being the sexy one in the group. Please continue to watch me and watch Dreamcatcher!” she finished her impression, throwing in a wink.

The entire room was stunned to silence. They hadn’t expected Gahyeon to go that hard. Jiu, Yoohyeon, and Dami’s mouths (that technically weren’t theirs) hung wide open. Handong coughed, hiding her (Siyeon’s) red cheeks. Siyeon was busy checking out her girlfriend’s body. Sua nodded her head, clearly impressed.

“Damn, Gahyeon, it took me months to master that pose and you nailed it on the first try! Well done, kid. While we’re at it, Siyeon, should I be offended that you’re checking out another girl or pleased because it’s still sort of me?” the main dancer spoke, giving Gahyeon a thumbs up and poking her girlfriend (in Dami’s body.)

“Can you blame me? I’ve always said I liked your body,” Siyeon shrugged.

Gahyeon blushed, “Um, should I be uncomfortable that you admitted to checking me out?” she asked.

“You definitely should be, Gahyeon! Gosh, Siyeon, keep it in your pants, or I guess Dami’s pants,” Handong huffed.

“Ew, don’t make this about my body! Siyeon, you’d better keep it PG as long as you’re me,” Dami warned.

“Aw, come on guys! I was just thinking about Sua’s-”

“Please don’t finish that sentence,” Jiu cut in, blushing.

As everyone was getting flustered by Siyeon, Sua was inching towards Gahyeon (in her body).The other girl gave her a confused look but the main dancer was undeterred. She grabbed Gahyeon’s (really, her) face and placed her lips on top of hers.

“Sua, what the hell?” Siyeon raged.

“W-What was that for?” Yoohyeon’s body shrieked, her cheeks flaming.

“Aw, come on, Gahyeonie! You can’t expect me not to want to kiss myself after that wonderful performance,” Sua shrugged.

“Wait a minute, are you back in your body, Sua?” Dami observed.

“Holy crap, I am! I’ve missed you, my beautiful body!” Sua squealed, hugging herself.

“You’re right! It looks like kissing transferred our souls because now I’m in Yoohyeon’s body,” Gahyeon noted, looking down at the much taller body she was now inside of.

“So that’s how we can fix this! Way to go, Sua! Your love for yourself just solved our problem,” Jiu cheered.

“So everyone just has to kiss until they end up back in their bodies. Er, isn’t this gonna be a little awkward?” Handong murmured.

“Just consider it business. After all, you’re gonna have to do it unless you want to spend the rest of your lives in each other’s bodies,” Sua retorted.

“Sua’s right, I want back in my body. Come here and pucker up, Siyeon!” Dami declared, marching up to the main vocalist (in the main rapper’s body) and kissing her.

“Thank god that’s over,” Dami sighed in relief as she checked herself over.

“Hey, I resent that sentiment! Kissing me isn’t that bad,” Siyeon whined (from Jiu’s body).

“You know what, I want to get this over with too. Come here, Yoohyeon. Remember, Jiu, I’m only doing this to get my body back,” Handong warned before connecting her lips with Yoohyeon’s.

Jiu pouted but kept quiet. She knew that this was only for the purpose of getting back in their bodies. Not to mention them switching had been her fault in the first place. She just waited for them to finish.

“Phew, I’m back!” Handong breathed, smiling.

“Don’t worry, Jiu, your kisses are still my favorite. At least it wasn’t really my lips kissing her,” Yoohyeon reassured her moping girlfriend.

“Okay, my turn! Since you’re already sulking, Jiu, hopefully you won’t mind if I kiss your girlfriend real quick too. I’m ready to get back to normal,” Siyeon decided, running over and kissing Yoohyeon who was now in her body.

“Woohoo, I’m back!” Siyeon danced around victoriously.

“Now no one can get mad at us for being in love!” Sua cheered, joining her.

“Looks like just Gahyeon, Jiu, and Yoohyeon are left,” Dami said.

“Here, Jiu, come kiss me! It will mean you have to kiss yourself but I’d rather you kiss me than Gahyeonie,” Yoohyeon insisted, pulling Jiu in for a kiss.

“And then last but not least, let’s end this!” Yoohyeon added, running over to kiss Gahyeon.

“Now we’re all back,” she declared from her own body at last.

“Well, that was a weird situation, but I’m glad we fixed it. I wondering how kissing was able to solve the problem?” Jiu wondered.

“My guess is that it somehow transferred our magic auras between bodies. We can probably use our magic again now. At least, I hope we can,” Dami explained.

Everyone decided to test Dami’s theory, and they were all relieved to see that they could once again summon their magical energy.

“Now that that’s over, let's go practice. After all, this comeback isn’t going to prepare itself!” Jiu encouraged everyone, racing to turn on the music.

Everyone collectively groaned at the quick turn-around. Leave it to their leader to still be thinking of the band even after they had all just gone through a major crisis. Soon enough, Dreamcatcher were back to practicing once again. Oddly enough, it seemed that temporarily being each other made them more synchronized than ever. Even with the unexpected mishap, Jiu’s plan to help the group bond had been a success. They would be ready to work as a team and make this comeback even more amazing.


	11. Cheshire Cat [Handong/Gahyeon]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Howdy friends! It's been a minute. I had some writer's block-sorry if this chapter isn't as good since it was kind of a struggle to write. Anywaysies, I have been SO shook by bby Gahyeon this era and wanted to write something about it. I decided her and Handong are kyoot together (idk what their ship name is pls enlighten me if you know) hence why I paired them up. Maybe I'll put Dami with someone from her 97line harem to even things out ghhfhf. Anyways, I hope you enjoy! Happy October month of spoopy and Siyeon's birth-I hope to post lots of updates this month bc witches and Halloween ofc

Excitement rippled through Dreamcatcher’s dressing room and seemed to physically buzz through the air. The girls were finally getting a special stage on MusicBank for the first time in a while. They were going to be performing Wonderland, one of the nontitle tracks on their album. This was their first time performing one of their own songs as a special stage, rather than a cover. Being able to do this on one of the biggest music shows in the country was a huge deal for a group from a small company. As usual, the stakes were high for the girls. Wonderland had both a different sound and vibe from everything they had performed before. While their title tracks tended to be intense, Wonderland was more slow and sensual. The stage was centered on the concept of being seductive temptresses, whisking people away into the dream world. 

There was plenty to be nervous about, and all of the girls were worried about how the stage would turn out. Still, one member in particular seemed to faring off the worst and that was Gahyeon. She was used to being known as the cute one, Dreamcatcher’s youngest member who danced well and fit their concept, but managed to exude a softer energy than everyone else. No matter how much intensity she put into her dancing, she could see that most fans labeled her with words like “adorable” and “soft” while the other members received reactions freaking out about how “hot” and “dangerous” they were. Gahyeon feared that she would put herself out there onstage only to be fawned over and not taken seriously. She had legally become an adult this year, and she was determined to be treated like one.

Gahyeon had finished getting ready before everyone else and had found a private corner in the dressing room to prepare for the show. She figured that if Dami had gotten away with using magic onstage during “You and I,” then she should be able to do the same. She knew that it was risky, and that the other members might be upset with her, but she was sick of being everyone’s baby. It was one thing when she wasn’t an adult, but now she wanted to explore this new concept with a clean slate. She didn’t want people’s previous perceptions of her to ruin this opportunity to finally rebrand herself and try something new. She was just going to use a simple charm to enhance her sex appeal and reduce the cute factor a little. It wouldn’t hurt anybody and the audience would have no idea what hit them. If she was lucky, the members wouldn’t notice anything either.

Gahyeon was a quick learner and proficient magic user, as many of the older girls liked to complain about. They were always bitter that the youngest could execute complex spells with very little problems. Gahyeon relied on her talent to whip up her little trick for the stage today. All it took was a moment for her aura to completely change. She could feel new energy emitting from her body and knew that whatever she had done seemed to work. She sauntered up to the members, eager to see their reactions to her more mature self.

“Are you guys ready for today’s stage?” she inquired in a voice that she hoped was husky and mysterious.

Yoohyeon, who was standing the closest to her, took one glance at her and nearly choked on her water bottle. The lead vocalist seemed to have forgotten what swallowing and breathing were because she continued to cough pathetically until Jiu whacked her back to get her to stop choking. The taller girl cleared her throat, muttered her thanks to her girlfriend, and suddenly found the floor an interesting place to look at and avoid meeting anyone’s eyes. Jiu, confused and concerned by her girlfriend’s behavior, glanced over at whatever Yoohyeon had been reacting to only to gasp and throw her hand to her mouth.

“G-Gahyeon? Is that you? I almost didn’t recognize you!” the oldest exclaimed.

Gahyeon smirked, “Yeah, it’s me. Just getting in character for our stage today,” she explained before shaking out her dark, silky curls in a glamorous fashion.

Sua walked by and whistled, “Damn, maknae! It looks like someone has been working on acing the girl crush concept. When did you get so hot?”

Gahyeon shrugged, “I suppose I’ve always been this way. People are just now starting to notice,” she tried to seem nonchalant although she couldn’t help but grin at the compliment.

Siyeon noticed her girlfriend checking out another girl and marched over to give both of them a piece of her mind. It took until she was standing right in front of them for her to realize it was Gahyeon. The main vocalist’s eyes practically bulged out of their sockets as she took in the sight of their maknae. She was so surprised that she was unable to formulate words and stuck to making idiotic mumbling noises until Gahyeon mercifully cut her off.

“Thanks, I know I look good,” she finished the other girl’s thought with a wink thrown in her direction.

Siyeon nodded her agreement with the statement and immediately stopped talking. Sua patted her girlfriend’s shoulder, glad that they could put aside petty jealousy to appreciate how hot their youngest had become.

Dami and Handong noticed that the other members were gathered in the corner acting stranger than usual and decided to see what all of the commotion was about. Dami’s eyes immediately fell on Gahyeon in the center of the circle and she couldn’t help but stare. She seemed to be taking in the younger girl’s different demeanor and processing that their baby was clearly not interested in being the baby anymore. Handong, on the other hand, had a much more noticeable reaction. Her face rivaled her hair in brightness, although her cheeks had turned a much redder color than the auburn locks atop her head. Gahyeon became self-conscious at her roommate’s stare and her cool act started to falter. Her cheeks became rosy and she scratched her head nervously.

“Wow, Gahyeon, you look, um, you look, wow,” Handong struggled to form the words she wanted to say, although this time not because of the language barrier.

“Th-Thank You,” Gahyeon muttered with a shy smile.

Jiu could sense the unspoken tension and her eyes began to twinkle. She made eye contact with Dami who seemed to be realizing the same thing. The two shared a conspiratorial grin before grabbing onto the other members and dragging them away.

“Yoohyeonie, let’s go grab a snack! I’m hungry!” Jiu chirped, which at least always held some truth.

“Guys, let’s go take a selfie. The lighting over there is perfect,” Dami came up with as her excuse for pulling Sua and Siyeon away from the group.

“Jiu, you know I’m always happy to buy you snacks, but why the rush?” Yoohyeon inquired as she let herself be taken.

“We’re not actually going to buy snacks, although I could use a quick nibble. We’re just gonna hide over here and watch the magic happen,” the older girl explained as she urged her girlfriend into a hiding spot behind the mirror. 

The two poked their heads out and Yoohyeon followed the leader’s gaze to where Handong and Gahyeon were standing.

“Why are we spying on Dongie and Gahyeonie? What magic are you talking about? Is one of them casting a spell?” the lead vocalist asked.

Jiu shook her head, “You’re lucky you’re cute,” she sighed as she pinched her girlfriend’s cheek affectionately.

Meanwhile, Dami had gotten Sua and Siyeon to a hiding spot behind all of their stuff.

“This seems like a weird place to take a selfie,” Siyeon commented as she shifted someone’s purse to try and make a spot for her to sit.

“I don’t think we’re here to take a picture,” Sua realized as she watched Dami whose attention was on the duo in the corner.

“Then what are we here for?” Siyeon griped, oblivious to what the two girls were focused on.

“She’s lucky she’s cute,” Sua grumbled to Dami who snickered.  
~  
Gahyeon and Handong remained rooted in their spots once everyone had left. The two stood there in awkward silence for a bit, neither one of them able to maintain eye contact. Something had changed in the atmosphere now that the other members were gone. Gahyeon still held her sexier aura, but there was something else happening. Dreamcatcher’s youngest member found herself more nervous than she had been when she was talking to the others. What was it about Handong that had made her lose her cool? She already knew the answer to that question, but was too scared to admit it. No spell could eliminate the feelings her roommate stirred up inside of her. It had been a recent development, but Gahyeon realized that Handong was a big reason she had made the decision to cast this spell. Sure, she was sick of being babied by fans and the other members, but Handong was the one whose perception she wanted to change most of all. She knew that Handong thought of her as her sweet, innocent younger roommate, and she had been hoping that this stage could be her chance to prove the other girl wrong. Sure, she could be sweet and innocent, but she was also capable of more than that.

“So, uh, how are you feeling about the performance today?” Gahyeon struck up a conversation as she twiddled her fingers nervously.

“I’m nervous, but I’m sure we’ll do well. What about you?” Handong’s reply was equally polite and stiff.

Their conversation continued like this, an awkward exchange of small talk and pleasant commentary. They spent several minutes chatting about topics from the weather to their outfits for today and all they had accomplished was not completely humiliating themselves in front of the other. It was clear both girls were tiptoeing around the unspoken tension between them. Jiu was doing all she could not to rip her hair out as she watched them. Yoohyeon was finally starting to pick up what was going on, and was also cringing at how boring the interaction was. On the other side of the room, Dami facepalmed at how helpless Handong and Gahyeon were. Sua had to bite her tongue to keep from yelling “Just kiss already!” and was clenching her fists in agitation. Siyeon, like Yoohyeon, had finally figured out the situation and was holding her own hand to keep herself from casting a spell to force the two to just finish the job and admit their feelings for each other. The girls had all agreed that love spells were off-limits, especially on members.

Eventually, it was time for Dreamcatcher to line up and roll out for their performance. Gahyeon bid an uncomfortable farewell to her roommate and headed to her spot in line. It seemed that her spell had done nothing to help her. She had been so excited to show off her more adult self, but all she had done was act like an awkward buffoon around the older girl. Why was it so much easier to pull of this act in front of the other members than with her? Gahyeon tried not to let her sadness show too much. She was a performer first and foremost. She needed to focus on delivering a good show for the fans. That was when she realized that this stage could be her saving grace. The girls always watched themselves on broadcasts in order to evaluate their performance and focus on improving anything that went wrong. If she managed to pull off this sexier concept along with her magically enhanced aura, maybe Handong would react the way she hoped. She willed herself to power through her nerves as she positioned herself onstage-it was time to take everyone to wonderland and show them a new side of her.  
~  
After an eventful day filming the broadcast and fulfilling all of their schedules, the girls were able to gather in their dorm to watch the performance. They were curious to see how everything turned out on-camera. They thought they had done well at the prerecording, but harsh lighting or a close-up of an unsuspecting member could always reduce the quality of the final product. The girls had been told that it turned out really well, but wanted to make sure this was true for themselves. After all, being the one on-camera was entirely different than watching somebody else.

All day, the other girls had been trying to get Handong and Gahyeon to redo their earlier conversation backstage. They did whatever they could to get the duo alone, but all of their attempts had been futile. Gahyeon, despite her spell’s effects and the effort she had put into her performance, was still helpless when it came to her crush. Handong was just as pathetic at talking to the younger girl, so all the two were able to do was exchange pleasantries and quickly focus their attention on anything else in the room as a distraction. The remaining members were starting to feel that operation “Get Handong and Gahyeon Together” was doomed to fail.

Gahyeon, too, was worried that she had no chance with Handong. This performance was her only hope. If Handong still treated her like a younger sister after this, then Gahyeon could say goodbye to ever having a chance with her and she would have wasted her spell. Before they clicked play on the video, the girls made sure to read as many fan comments as possible. Gahyeon felt herself smiling at the amount of people expressing their shock and sorrow that Dreamcatcher’s youngest member was now an adult and that this stage had proved it. This was a sign that maybe this would work. If the fans thought this, hopefully so would Handong. Handong was sitting on the opposite end of the room, so Gahyeon made sure she was seated where she would be able to watch the older girl’s reactions from her peripheral field. Once they had read as many fan comments as they could, Jiu started the video of the performance. Everyone melted over the opening pose, especially the sight of Siyeon leaning on Gahyeon’s shoulder. Gahyeon frowned as the older girls fawned over her cuteness. Some use that spell had been. 

When Gahyeon’s first part came, however, the camera zoomed in on her and everything changed. As if a switch had been flipped inside of her, Gahyeon’s expression became mystifying. Her eyes literally sparkled from the makeup used by their stylist as she bewitched the audience with her coy expression. The girls let out a collective gasp at what a minx their youngest could be. Their reactions only became bigger as the performance continued. Gahyeon heard someone swallow heavily when they watched her dancing next to Sua, her hips moving in perfect rhythm. The final chorus came along and everyone struggled to contain themselves as they watched Gahyeon creep across the stage with the grace of a feline on the hunt. She clearly was on the hunt for the hearts of fans and the girls themselves. Finally, the switch was flipped once again and Gahyeon rested her head gently on Siyeon’s shoulder with a peaceful, angelic expression for the ending pose. 

Pretty soon the entire room was a mess of crying from Jiu over her baby growing up, indignant protests from Sua and Siyeon about the nerve Gahyeon had to be so hot, whistles from Yoohyeon and Dami in admiration of the performance, and silence from Handong who sat in starstruck awe. Gahyeon’s cheeks flushed at the attention from her members. She couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride in getting such a strong reaction. It seemed that her spell had paid off after all. Both the fans and the members had fallen for her charm. It seemed that the girls had no idea she had used magic onstage. Then again her trick was much less obvious than the whole Dami’s stick debacle. Not to mention she had cast her spell before the performance, but it seemed that it had really been activated when the music picked up. 

“Good work on today’s stage everybody! Gahyeon, it hurts my heart to see you so grown up,” Jiu sniffed as she wiped her tears.

“You really had us all shook. I couldn’t stop watching you whenever you were on-camera,” Yoohyeon agreed as she patted Gahyeon’s head.

“I’m a little salty that the youngest was sexier than me for once,” Sua joked which prompted a combination of eye-rolls and chuckles.

“You know what’s crazy? It’s like you were two different people. During the performance I barely recognized you, but before and after it you turned back into the Gahyeon I know. It was like magic,” Siyeon complimented.

“Wait a second, that’s actually a really good point. Did you use magic for the performance today?” Dami pondered, looking at the youngest expectantly.

Gahyeon shuffled uncomfortably, “Uh, I may or may not have used a small charm to enhance my stage presence. I only did it to keep people from treating me like a kid trying to be sexy!” she defended herself.

“Gahyeon, you don’t need magic for people to take you seriously,” Yoohyeon tried to reassure the smaller girl.

“Yeah, right! I remember when you guys said that I look cute when I try to do sexy dances. Not to mention all of you laughed at me when I talked about my coming of age. The fans do the same thing. Everyone treats me like a child and I didn’t want to make a fool of myself again today. I needed to do this in order for everyone to take me seriously,” the youngest sulked, careful to generalize her feelings rather than specify that she wanted Handong in particular to notice her.

“Well, you were great. I think everyone can agree on that. Hopefully next time you won’t feel the need to cast a spell for us to say that,” Jiu insisted.

“Handong, you’ve been awfully quiet on this matter. Care to weigh in?” Siyeon prompted, deciding to give their mission another go.

“After all, you’re her roommate. You probably know how she feels better than anyone,” Dami chimed in.

“Come on guys, it’s not like I talk about this all the time. Handong doesn’t owe me anything. I appreciate you guys trying to make me feel better about this, but don’t put her on the spot,” Gahyeon muttered, growing shy again.

“If I’m being honest, I don’t really even know what to say. You were really cool, Gahyeon. You’ve definitely grown up,” Handong spoke up.

Gahyeon wanted to be pleased at Handong’s acknowledgement of her maturity, but she couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. That seemed like an awfully lukewarm reaction, especially compared to everyone else. The other members and her fans had given her much higher praise, even the staff members had commented on Gahyeon’s sexier image. She couldn’t help but be a bit upset that the person whose feelings she cared most about was so nonchalant about the whole issue. Still, as she had said, Handong didn’t owe her anything. It’s not like they were dating or even particularly close compared to the others. She forced a smile as she thanked her roommate and excused herself to head to bed. It had been a long day and she was ready to put everything to rest-including her crush on Handong. She was clearly just a silly kid in love with someone who only thought of her as a younger peer. The other members watched the youngest go with worried expressions, all of them aware of how she felt about her bandmate at this point. Their eyes shifted to Handong who was staring at anything except for Gahyeon’s retreating figure.

“I think I’ll head to bed now as well. Good work today everyone. Sweet dreams,” the Chinese member murmured before heading after her roommate.

“Please let some action finally happen. I am sick of watching those two tiptoe around their undeniable chemistry. It’s actually killing me how boring they are!” Sua whispered once the other girl was out of earshot.

“Did you hear how low Handong’s voice got when she was leaving? Something tells me she can’t hold back much longer,” Dami chuckled.

“I guess we’ll find out tomorrow morning,” Yoohyeon shrugged.

“Tomorrow morning my ass! Who else is gonna eavesdrop at their door with me?” Siyeon asked before being answered with a collective raise of hands.

“What are we doing sitting around here for? Let’s go check things out!” Jiu declared, leading the quintet to Gahyeon and Handong’s room.  
~  
Inside the bedroom, the awkwardness was palpable. Tension hung in the air as the two girls silently went about their bedtime routines. Gahyeon was curled up in her bed and waiting for Handong to finish getting ready and turn off the light. She just wanted to go to bed after a long day and try to forget that any of this had happened. After several minutes had passed and the room remained illuminated, Gahyeon looked up to see what was going on. She was surprised to see her roommate standing rooted in a spot on the floor, staring at her. It was hard to tell what was going through the other girl’s mind as her unreadable stare fixated on the younger girl.

“Um, is everything okay?” Gahyeon questioned, becoming self-conscious once more and wrapping her blankets around herself.

“Actually, it’s not. I don’t know how much longer I can do this. Between watching that performance and looking at you now, I’m finding it harder and harder to resist you. I was trying to seem cool, but the truth is that you’ve been driving me crazy all day. I can’t stop thinking about you,” the older girl confessed in a deep whisper.

“C-Come again? I don’t think I heard you correctly. Maybe your Korean is a little off?” Gahyeon laughed nervously.

Handong shook her head, “I know what I’m trying to say. I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable, but I just can’t hold it in anymore. I know I’m terrible for corrupting the youngest member and my roommate like this. Maybe it’s your magic taking a hold on me, or maybe watching the stage from today has made me come to terms with how I feel, but I’m drawn to you. I used to think of you as our little cutie, but today you’ve proven that you are a beautiful woman on top of it. I don’t even know what to do anymore. You can ignore this if you want, and I hope you can still work with me even if you don’t feel the same way. I just can’t keep lying about this and be in the same room as you,” she explained as she stepped closer to where the other girl was lying down.

Gahyeon felt her breath hitch with each sentence her roommate uttered. She found herself literally clutching onto her blankets as she metaphorically hung onto every word. It was shocking to hear the words she had been hoping to hear from the person she wanted to hear them from. Who knew that all along her spell had worked and Handong was having an internal crisis about her new image? Still, one thing was troubling her about the other girl’s confession. Like she had said, it could just be Gahyeon’s spell causing this whole ordeal. She had used magic to alter herself, and it was possible that it had impacted everyone’s feelings about her as well. What if this attraction Handong was expressing was all artificial, a result of witchcraft?

“Handong, stop. I don’t want to take this any further if like you said, it’s just my magic impacting you. I feel like we shouldn’t be doing this,” she weakly protested, putting her hands out to stop the other girl who was now sitting on her bed and leaning towards her.

Handong frowned, “You’re not giving yourself enough credit, Gahyeon. You’re still gorgeous, with or without a spell. I should have explained myself better. I was getting defensive because I’m worried you don’t feel the same way I do and you would be creeped out by my confession. Your spell was a wake-up call if anything. It helped me realize that I was keeping myself from being true to my feelings about you because of your position as the cute and innocent youngest. Now that you’ve shattered that image, I am more comfortable accepting that you have become an adult. If you don’t feel the same way about me, I understand and I’ll get over it. However, if you’re worried that I am only into you because of a spell, then you’re mistaken,” she insisted.

Gahyeon bit her lip and her cheeks became pink, “Do you really mean that? If so, I actually have a confession to make too. The main reason I cast this spell had nothing to do with the fans or the other members. I was actually thinking of you when I wanted to be taken seriously as a more mature person. I’ve had a crush on you for a little while now and I wanted you to stop treating me like a baby and see me as someone you could possibly be with,” she divulged.

Handong couldn’t help but giggle at how cute the younger girl was being. This prompted Gahyeon to fold her arms and pout which made her look even cuter. The Chinese girl immediately pulled her younger roommate in for a hug and gave her a quick peck on the nose.

“As much as you want to be taken seriously onstage, it looks like you’re still as cute as ever when we’re not performing,” Handong joked.

“I guess I can live with that. At least you aren’t calling me a kid,” Gahyeon conceded before resting her head on her roommate’s shoulder.

The two sat like this for several seconds, Handong gazing down lovingly at Gahyeon whose head squished comfortably against her shoulder. Then, Gahyeon, emboldened with the knowledge that her crush felt the same way about her, leaned in for a kiss. Jiu, whose turn it was in the peephole of the door, screamed in excitement. This caused the two roommates to jerk in surprise and bang their heads together. Once they rubbed their heads and cleared the pain, they turned their attention to the unexpected intruders.

“Were you guys spying on us? Does anyone in this group know what privacy is?” Gahyeon whined loud enough for the members outside the door to hear.

Prompted by this cue, the five remaining members entered the room with guilty expressions. Handong and Gahyeon crossed their arms and stared down at them, clearly awaiting an apology.

“We’re sorry for spying on you. Can you blame us though? All day we were trying to get the two of you to hurry up and make things happen. Even an idiot could see that you two like each other, yet whenever we got you alone it was like watching paint dry. We just wanted to be there when something interesting started happening,” Dami spoke up.

“Well, thanks for supporting us, although you could phrase that in a nicer way,” Gahyeon scoffed.

“Aw come on, now isn’t the time for arguing. We should be celebrating that our Dongie and our Gahyeonie are getting together!” Jiu cheered, throwing her arms around the blossoming couple.

“It feels weird to hear it said out loud. It almost doesn’t feel real,” Gahyeon commented with a hand held to her cheek in awe.

Handong smiled, “Well, it certainly feels real to me. As I said, with or without a spell you’re still the one for me!” she declared before blushing and covering her face along with Gahyeon at the cheesy statement.

“Ugh, could you two be any cuter? I feel like I’m gonna vomit rainbows!” Sua squealed.

“Handong has a point though, what are you gonna do about that spell, Gahyeonie?” Siyeon pondered.

Gahyeon grinned mischievously, “Oh, the spell isn’t going anywhere. I am not taking any chances on being reduced to my cuteness. This is the era of grownup Gahyeon!” she decided.

“I suppose I can live with that as long as you keep being yourself when you’re offstage. I can’t imagine having you like that all the time. I don’t think anyone would survive,” Handong teased, winking at Gahyeon who winked back.

“Wow, I feel bad for the fans. They don’t know what’s about to hit them,” Yoohyeon commented, which prompted the other girls to nod in agreement.

With her newfound charisma and power to attract others in a new way, Gahyeon would be ready to take everyone to wonderland. Or, perhaps, she would be taking everyone to the nightmare world as they would learn that behind her dreamy cuteness lies a much more powerful force. After all, witches could certainly be dangerous, and the cuter they are, the harder one falls.


	12. Break Up My Dream [Jiyoo]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I considered breaking this chapter into parts, but couldn't decide on a good place to do so. That means this chapter is a long boi! I had been wanting to write something based on the What MV and it took me until the week of goodbye stages to do it. :') I wanted to tie it in with the witchy theme and try to make a fic out of it so I had to take some liberties on the sequence of events, but hopefully there are things that ring a bell about the video in the chapter. Thank you all for your support and let's all thank Dreamcatcher for another amazing era! <3

Night had fallen on Dreamcatcher’s dorm. The inky, black sky was lit only by the glow of the moon and the few stars that speckled its emptiness. Bedtime had come and all of the girls had fallen into a deep slumber, except for one. Yoohyeon was currently tossing and turning restlessly, her muscles tense despite her closed eyes. Usually Sua was known as the member prone to nightmares, but lately Yoohyeon had been the one suffering. She found that whenever she fell asleep, horrible images would invade her dreams and wake her in a cold sweat of terror. Tonight was no different. 

Yoohyeon soon began calling out in her sleep as she continued to writhe around. The noise and movement woke her roommate, Sua, who looked at her sympathetically. Normally the older girl would comfort Yoohyeon herself, but no one did a better job of bringing her back to reality than her girlfriend, Jiu. Sua crept into the hallway to go and fetch their leader. Jiu already knew what was happening the minute she felt Sua gently shaking her awake. She got up quietly, careful not to wake her sleeping roommates. Jiu followed Sua to her shared room with Yoohyeon and when she got there, she raced to her girlfriend’s side. Sua remained in the doorway in order to give them some space. Jiu engulfed the taller girl’s body into her arms and held her to her chest. She laid her head on top of Yoohyeon’s and whispered comforting words to her. Yoohyeon awoke with a start and clung to her as if her life depended on it. As soon as she came to her senses and realized where she was, the younger girl burst into tears and began apologizing profusely.

“I did it again, didn’t I? I can’t believe I inconvenienced you again! I’m so sorry,” the younger girl whimpered pitifully as she held onto her girlfriend.

Jiu kissed her forehead, “Yoohyeon, you know you could never be an inconvenience to me. What I’m bothered by is the fact that you have been suffering so much. These nightmares won’t leave you alone, will they? I just want you to have a good night’s rest. I wish there was more that I could do,” she assured her.

Yoohyeon nuzzled her head against Jiu’s neck, “You’re already doing more than enough. When you’re by my side, the nightmares go away,” she mumbled sleepily.

Jiu watched with sad eyes as the younger girl fell asleep on her chest. It seemed that these nightmares were exhausting her. She was relieved to see that at least Yoohyeon seemed more at peace in her arms. She glanced at Sua, who smiled at her from the doorway and indicated that she would go sleep in Jiu’s room to give them some alone time. Jiu returned her focus to her girlfriend, gently running her fingers through her hair. She got into a more comfortable position while still embracing the sleeping beauty, and eventually drifted into slumber as well.

Morning arrived, and Jiu woke up to find the weight on top of her was missing. Yoohyeon must have gotten up well before her. She headed into the kitchen to find her beloved companion eating breakfast with Gahyeon. Yoohyeon waved at her girlfriend with the hand that wasn’t holding her food. The lead vocalist looked well rested, but Jiu was troubled by how scared the younger girl had been before she came to wake her. All she wanted was for Yoohyeon to be able to sleep on her own and not be afraid. She loved being able to comfort her, but she wouldn’t be able to do this all the time. Whenever they stayed in hotels, for instance, the staff decided who would room with who and Jiu couldn’t just wander the hallways into Yoohyeon’s room. Not to mention when they had breaks, all of the girls usually traveled or spent time with their families. Jiu wouldn’t be able to race across the country in the middle of the night, no matter how much she was willing to. She knew that Yoohyeon’s problem needed a more permanent solution, and she was determined to figure it out.  
~  
Day turned to night once more, and this time Jiu sat at her girlfriend’s bedside. She had made it a point to stay up later than Yoohyeon, and had asked Sua to let her know when the other girl was asleep. Jiu was waiting to see if another nightmare struck, so that she could strike back this time. She had spent all day looking for spells and charms to ward off nightmares. There were none that could prevent them, but magic could be used to interfere with dreams. Jiu had studied this topic carefully using whatever resources she could find, which were limited due to the scarce amount of witches in the world. Still, she had done what she could and hoped that she would be able to save Yoohyeon from whatever was hurting her in her dreams.

Sua was supportive when Jiu confided her plans to her, but had insisted that she be around to help out. She was once again standing in the doorway, keeping a close eye on the couple. The older girls shared a look when they saw Yoohyeon begin to tremble. Almost immediately after, Yoohyeon’s breathing became labored and she cried out in her sleep. Jiu’s heart broke seeing her girlfriend in such a pitiful state, but this time she could not wake her. She was determined to fix things once and for all. Jiu closed her eyes and channeled her magic, trying to synch her conscious mind with Yoohyeon’s subconscious. In an instant, everything fell into place and Jiu suddenly vanished from the room.

Sua gasped in surprise. Jiu had said that she was going to use her magic to alter Yoohyeon’s dreams, but she hadn’t mentioned disappearing. Dreamcatcher’s main dancer looked around worriedly, unsure of what to do. Should she wake Yoohyeon? Jiu had said that if anything were to happen to her, Sua was supposed to take care of her girlfriend for her. Sua ran towards the younger girl, frantically calling her name. Yoohyeon had gone limp, and was completely silent. Her eyes remained closed as if she were trapped in slumber. Sua grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her, continuing to yell her name louder and louder. When she realized her efforts were getting her nowhere, she let go and stopped screaming. It was as if Yoohyeon was in a coma, and could not hear or feel her presence. Sua fell to the floor in shock, unsure of what to do.

“Sua, what’s going on? I heard you yelling Yoohyeon’s name. Is she okay? Is it the nightmares again? This one sounded especially bad,” Dami called as she raced into the room with the other members in tow.

“Are you okay?” Siyeon worried, leaning down to check on her girlfriend.

“I think something awful has happened,” Sua whispered with tears in her eyes.  
~  
When Jiu cast the spell, she didn’t expect to suddenly find herself in a different place. Instead of Yoohyeon and Sua’s bedroom, she found herself standing in the middle of a road she had never seen before. Her eyes darted around frantically, searching in case any cars were coming, but the street appeared to be empty. She saw outlines of buildings surrounding her, but everything was dark and quiet. Where was she? More importantly, where was Yoohyeon? Jiu needed to help the other girl, but how was she supposed to do that from here?

“Yoohyeon, are you there?” she called out, only to hear her voice reverberating around her as it echoed off the empty buildings.

This place was eerily devoid of any signs of life. She would not get any answers standing here talking to herself. Jiu decided to follow the street in front of her and see if it led anywhere. She found herself passing through what seemed to be an abandoned city. The only light came from the lamp posts overhead since the buildings were pitch black. There were no people or even animals about, her only companions were various objects along the way such as fire hydrants and sewer grates. Jiu kept running, determined to find anybody, or anything, that could help her.

Eventually she reached the outskirts of the city. There was a tall building there that caught her attention and caused her to look upwards. Atop the building she could see the glow of a full moon. There was something else about this building that stood out to her. There seemed to be a figure standing on top of it, staring down at her. Jiu inched towards the mysterious being, hoping to get a closer look. Her heart nearly beat right out of her chest when she saw that it was Yoohyeon watching over her. The girl’s eyes were darker than usual, and she was dressed in a different outfit than what she had worn to bed. Jiu was confused as to how they both ended up here, but Yoohyeon looked like she knew what she was doing. Jiu clutched her chest in relief that her girlfriend was alright.

“Yoohyeon, I’m so glad you’re here with me! What are you doing up there? Do you know what’s going on?” Jiu called, craning her neck upward.

Yoohyeon said nothing and started to walk away. Jiu was confused by the other girl’s odd behavior. Was she coming down to talk to her? Usually Yoohyeon would at least reply and let her know what she was doing. Jiu shrugged and waited for the other girl to come to her. Several minutes passed and she didn’t see or hear any sign of the younger girl. Jiu began to grow worried, searching for a way up the building. She needed to find her again and figure out what was going on so they could get out of this place. Jiu pounded the building in frustration and leaned her head against its stony surface. She had no idea where she was, or how she had ended up here. Now she had found Yoohyeon only to lose her again. What was she going to do?  
~  
“Wait, so you think Jiu caused Yoohyeon to become like this?” Handong was double checking to make sure she understood Sua properly.

Handong, Siyeon, Sua, and Dami were currently sitting on the floor of Sua and Yoohyeon’s room while Gahyeon sat on Yoohyeon’s bed holding the unconscious girl in her arms. As the other four were talking, the youngest member stroked her friend’s hair and gently spoke to her in hopes of waking her up. Sua wrung her hands nervously and shifted into a more comfortable position to answer Handong’s question. Siyeon rubbed comforting circles on her girlfriend’s back in order to encourage her, while Dami and Handong waited patiently for her explanation.

“Yes, Jiu had told me she had been researching ways to help Yoohyeon with her nightmares. She was sick of seeing her suffer. She told me there was a way she could interfere with Yoohyeon’s dreams and that would hopefully stop them from scaring her every night. When she performed the magic, she just disappeared from the room. She told me to take care of Yoohyeon if anything happened to her, so I tried to wake her up. That was when I realized that Yoohyeon isn’t just sleeping anymore. I think Jiu somehow entered Yoohyeon’s mind and has trapped Yoohyeon in a state of dreaming. She seems to be in some kind of limbo state between consciousness and unconsciousness,” the main dancer hypothesized.

Dami blinked, “Wow, that’s quite a theory you have there. Still, it makes a lot of sense based on your recollection of what happened. If Jiu is trapped in Yoohyeon’s nightmare, though, she’s probably in danger. I mean, all of us have heard how terrified Yoohyeon gets some nights. Whatever is going on in there must be pretty horrible,” she worried.

“Not to mention that as long as Jiu’s gone, poor Yoohyeon is going to be stuck like this,” Gahyeon grieved, pitying her friend.

“We’ve gotta do something! We can’t just leave things like this. We should use our magic and go after Jiu or see if there’s another spell we can cast to bring her back and wake Yoohyeon up!” Siyeon exclaimed.

“I want to help them, but what if us interfering makes things even worse? For all we know, Jiu’s got everything covered. We need to come up with a plan in order to make sure we’re doing what’s best for our friends,” Handong fired back.

Sua nodded, “I’m with Dongie on this. I watched Jiu until the moment she disappeared, and you could tell she would go through hell or high water to save Yoohyeon. We shouldn’t get in her way,” she stated, patting Siyeon’s hand.

“We can’t just leave her there alone! Like Dami said, whatever Yoohyeon has been dreaming about scares her senseless almost every night. We can’t let Jiu face off with whatever the hell it is without backup!” Siyeon protested angrily, yanking her hand from Sua’s grip.

Before anyone could stop her, Siyeon stood up and began to cast a spell. Sua got up and grabbed onto her in an effort to thwart her, but it was too late. The main vocalist had disappeared. Sua groaned and fell to the ground once more, now worried for her girlfriend on top of everything else. Dami and Handong shared looks of vexation. Gahyeon looked down at Yoohyeon worriedly, wondering if Siyeon’s actions would impact her fragile state.

“Well, what do you suppose we should do now?” Dami asked the group.

“I’m going after her. It bothered me enough to have to let Jiu act on her own, but Siyeon is my responsibility. I’m not going to let her do this alone,” Sua decided.

“And we’re not letting you do this alone either. Let’s just take a moment to put our heads together and make a plan on how to fix this, okay? I promise we’ll get Siyeon and Jiu back, and fix Yoohyeon, but we can’t act on impulse,” Dami reasoned with her.

Sua nodded, even though she looked impatient. Her, Dami, and Handong set to work consolidating the shared spellbook they had in the dormitory as well as what little online resources they could find, in order to form a strategy. Gahyeon watched them from her spot with Yoohyeon, having been assigned to keep an eye on their unconscious bandmate. The youngest silently prayed that all of her friends would be okay and that they could bring this nightmare to an end once and for all.  
~  
Jiu pulled herself together and stopped leaning against the building. Yoohyeon couldn’t have just vanished into thin air. Well, she could have, since Jiu had already done that herself, but that was beside the point. Jiu needed to find her girlfriend so they could work together to figure out where they were and how they would get back home. Jiu was still unsure of where she had ended up. A part of her was wondering if she had somehow entered Yoohyeon’s subconscious and was currently in her dreams. If that was the case, though, why was Yoohyeon there? Had she been transported into her own dream or was this Yoohyeon a figment of the real Yoohyeon’s imagination? Jiu clutched her head and groaned in confusion.

“This is starting to sound like Inception!” she complained.

Jiu figured that regardless of whether this Yoohyeon was the real deal or not, she needed to find her. If it was actually her girlfriend who she had seen, she wanted to protect her and find a way for them to escape this place together. If the figure was just a mental representation of Yoohyeon in her dreams, then she was likely to have some answers about what to do. Either way, finding her made more sense than waiting around doing nothing. Jiu assumed that Yoohyeon had headed into one of the buildings on the outskirts of town, since otherwise Jiu would have seen her leave. She headed in that direction and hoped that it would turn out to be a productive decision.  
~  
Siyeon was startled when she looked around and saw herself in a desolate place. Everything was so dreary and gray and empty. Where was she? She thought she had transported herself to wherever Jiu was, but maybe she had messed up. There was no sign of any living thing in this place, which appeared to be a city of some kind. She frowned and looked around for any indication of Jiu’s presence. She cupped her hands around her mouth in an effort to project her voice, and began calling for her friend.

“Jiu, are you here? It’s me, Siyeon! I’m here to rescue you!” she yelled.

Her voice echoed off the numerous buildings around her. Siyeon felt a chill run down her spine. This place was so empty it was giving her the creeps. Then again, what did she expect? Yoohyeon’s nightmare realm wasn’t going to be the type of place to offer a pleasant welcome. Siyeon grew concerned when her calls for Jiu went unanswered. Where could she be? She hoped the other girl was okay, and that she wasn’t too late. What if some kind of hideous creature crawled these streets and had gotten to her? Siyeon shuddered at the thought. She needed to gather her courage and stay hopeful. She took off down the streets, hoping that she would find her friend or at least some kind of clue as to where she could be. All the while, she kept calling for Jiu only to hear her own voice ringing back to her.  
~  
“Can we please go after her now? You’ve been reading for ages!” Sua demanded.

“Patience, Sua. Aren’t you supposed to be the oldest one here? I’m almost done reading up on dream magic. I bet you this is the source Jiu used. I mean, unless there are more websites out there that tell witches how to help loved ones suffering from nightmares. I think I’m just about ready to cast the spell they’re talking about. It looks like if you and Handong hold onto me while I do it, it should transport all three of us to wherever Jiu ended up. Hopefully Siyeon will be there too,” Dami explained as she studied her phone screen.

“I hope you’re right. I have faith in Siyeon, but she acted so impulsively that there’s a chance she could have sent herself anywhere. The sooner we go after them, the better. I should never have let Jiu do this on her own,” Sua sighed.

Handong patted her back, “Don’t worry, we’re all going to fix this together,” she encouraged her.

“Alright, I think I’m ready. Handong, Sua, brace yourselves and grab onto me, we’re going in. Gahyeon, you stay here with Yoohyeon. We’ve got this covered,” Dami instructed.

Sua and Handong did as they were told and each placed a hand on one of Dami’s shoulders. Dami took a deep breath before closing her eyes and focusing on her magic. Soon the three of them disappeared without a trace. Gahyeon looked at Yoohyeon once again and brushed a stray hair back into place. The girl did not even stir at her touch. Gahyeon frowned.

“Please let everyone be okay. I just want this all to be over soon,” the youngest member prayed.  
~  
Dami, Sua, and Handong found themselves face-to-face with a row of lockers. The trio exchanged confused looks at the unexpected situation. This was not exactly what they had been expecting to see when they entered Yoohyeon’s nightmares.

“Are you telling me her nightmares are about school? I mean, everybody hates it but usually the worst thing that happens are those dreams that you accidentally show up naked and everybody laughs at you. I don’t get how that would make her freak out the way she does every night,” Sua grumbled.

“Maybe I screwed up the spell? I mean, lockers don’t really strike me as the type of place where nightmares happen. Not to mention, I don’t see any sign of Siyeon or Jiu. Then again, they could have ended up here and then left,” Dami observed.

The trio took in their surroundings and noticed that there were cans of spray paint laying near the lockers. Handong bent down to pick one up and analyze it more closely.

“Maybe we should take advantage of these being left here. I have no idea why there’s a bunch of paint and lockers in Yoohyeon’s nightmares, but they make useful tools. If Jiu and Siyeon are around, we should leave them a message to indicate we’ve been here and are looking for them, in case they come to this spot,” she suggested.

“Great idea, Dongie! Not gonna lie, I have always wanted to try a little vandalism. Plus, this way we can’t get in trouble since I doubt Yoohyeon’s subconscious has a very active police force,” Sua commended the other girl.

“We should probably also take these masks next to the spray cans. I have no idea what they would be for, but they might come in handy as a disguise if we run into anything or anyone from Yoohyeon’s dreams,” Dami added.

The three girls put on the black, bunny shaped masks and picked up the golden spray cans. They quickly scrawled out a message to Siyeon and Jiu stating, “Handong, Dami, and Sua were here and we are looking for you.” After getting all of that in order, they discussed their next course of action.

“I think we should split up. I’m sure this place is massive, and we have a better shot of finding them if we divide and conquer. As long as we agree to eventually meet at this exact location, we should be fine. What do you guys say?” Sua offered.

Handong and Dami nodded, and the three girls parted ways. Handong headed towards a large closet near the lockers and opened the door. She figured a closet had more space inside and could lead to a number of places where Siyeon or Jiu could be. Dami and Sua each took one direction of the long hallway the lockers were in, hoping that between the three of them, they had covered every possible direction the two girls could have gone. They wanted to find them and reunite as quickly as possible so that they could make sure everyone was on the same page about what was happening. That way they would be able to decide how to save Yoohyeon together.  
~  
Gahyeon had set Yoohyeon down on the bed in order to pace around the room. Her nerves had been troubling her to the point where she could no longer sit still. It was killing her to not know where everyone was and whether they were alright. It was taking all of her self-control to listen to Dami and do her job of keeping an eye on Yoohyeon. In reality, she wanted to race in after the others and back them up on their rescue mission. She glanced back over at the limp figure laying on the bed, her heart clenching. Yoohyeon looked like a corpse. The girl had not uttered a sound or stirred even an inch since she had fallen into this state. Gahyeon hoped they would be able to bring her back and end her suffering. Yoohyeon deserved better than this.

Gahyeon walked over to the window and gazed out at the moon. Its tranquil glow soothed her and made her hopeful. She wished on every star she saw that her friends would return safely and that Yoohyeon would be okay. She turned around to head back over toward Yoohyeon, and noticed something strange. To Gahyeon’s surprise, the sleeping girl’s upper body rose up from the bed before slamming back down. As she fell, a frightening vortex opened up around her. Gahyeon was surprised to feel herself sucked in, she didn’t even have time to scream. When she came to, she was in a strange place. It was dingy and gray, and there was a row of lockers spray painted with Sua, Handong, and Dami’s handwriting. The younger girl gaped at the sight, and realized that Yoohyeon had somehow sucked her into her nightmare. She had to find the others!

“Is anybody here? It’s me, Gahyeon! Something weird happened to Yoohyeon and she sent me here somehow!” she called out.

“Gahyeon?” a muffled voice replied from nearby.

Gahyeon raced towards the sound and opened the closet door to see Handong. The Chinese girl let out a sigh of relief and engulfed her roommate in a hug.

“Thank goodness you’re okay! What do you mean Yoohyeon brought you here? I thought she couldn’t speak or move in her current state,” Handong inquired.

“I thought the same thing myself, but then she fell back against the bed and somehow opened a portal here. It sucked me in before I could even do anything! Either way, I suppose this works out since we can all work together now to save her. By the way, what were you doing in the closet?” Gahyeon wondered.

“Sua, Dami and I all split up to look for the others. We figured we’d cover more ground that way and then we could just meet up here where we left the message on those lockers. The closet ended up being a dead end, and extremely claustrophobic,” the other girl replied.

Gahyeon giggled, “Being in the closet can be extremely stifling. Anyways, we should look for the others. Wanna go together?” she offered, extending her hand to the other girl who gratefully accepted it.

“I think Sua and Dami each took one way down this hallway. Let’s go this way for now, and hopefully we’ll run into somebody eventually,” Handong decided, leading Gahyeon in the direction Sua had gone.  
~  
Dami was having trouble seeing how a nightmare world could have such an incredible library like the one she was currently admiring. She had run off in the opposite direction of Sua down the hallway and had stumbled upon this place almost right away. Sure, the books were not arranged in a traditional fashion, but the room was still full of good-looking reads. It didn’t take long to figure out that Jiu and Siyeon had not made it to this spot, so Dami didn’t want to spend too long in there. Still, any of those books could prove useful in helping Yoohyeon’s situation, so she decided to give them a closer look.

In order to reach the books, Dami had to sit on a wooden chair that was placed on top of them. They were stacked in an odd fashion, and Dami worried the chair would topple over if she wasn’t careful. Apparently the classic bookshelf approach was not Yoohyeon’s style in her dream world. Dami did her best despite the less than ideal setup, and managed to retrieve a book that caught her eye. It was a locked diary of some kind, with an ominous looking skull on the keyhole. Dami figured this book might serve an important purpose due to its unique appearance, and held onto it for safekeeping. With that taken care of, the library appeared to be a dead-end. Dami headed back towards the hallway so that she could touch base with Handong and Sua. She noticed that the closet Handong had gone into was empty, and continued in the direction Sua had gone. On the way, Dami encountered Handong and was surprised to see Gahyeon by her side.

“Gahyeon, what the hell are you doing here? Didn’t I tell you to keep an eye on Yoohyeon? She shouldn’t be left alone right now!” the main rapper scolded.

Gahyeon frowned before explaining, “Believe me, I’m not here of my own accord. Yoohyeon did something strange and sent me here. In a way, I’m kind of glad since it gave me a chance to check up on you guys and see if you were alright. Plus, now that we’re all here we can work together to fix this. By the way, what’s that in your hand?” the youngest pointed to the book when she was finished talking.

“You’re right, it’s better to make the most of this situation and work together to save Yoohyeon. I’m sorry for yelling at you. As for the thing in my hand, it’s a book I found. There was a whole pile of them in the room I ended up in, but this one caught my eye. I don’t know why, but it feels like this book can help us save Yoohyeon. Anyways, the books were all I found, so I figured I would help you guys search the other direction now. It looks like you two are going the same way, so why don’t we all walk together?” Dami stated, linking arms with the other two so they could all search for their friends together.  
~  
Sua tread carefully around the area she had ended up in. Her senses went on high alert the minute she noticed the police tape everywhere. She was really beginning to question Yoohyeon’s dreams. Though there was no evidence proving this was a crime scene, she wanted to proceed as if it were, just to be safe. The older girl nearly jumped out her skin when she heard someone calling her name. She had been so focused on getting around the police tape that she hadn’t heard Dami, Handong, and Gahyeon arrive.

“Geez, you scared the hell out of me! Can’t you see the police tape? This is not the type of place where you should sneak up on somebody! Hey, what’s Gahyeon doing here? Weren’t you supposed to watch Yoohyeon?” the older girl shrieked.

“Yoohyeon is actually the one who sent me here. We’re not really sure how or why, but I figured I should help if I’m here,” Gahyeon shrugged.

“Gahyeon and Handong told me they didn’t find anything except for each other, and I ended up in a library which was basically a dead-end. I did snag this interesting looking book though, in case it proves to be useful,” Dami filled Sua in on what she had missed.

Sua nodded, “Sounds good. All I found so far was this crime zone thing, and no sign of the others yet. Hopefully we’ll find them soon if we work together,” she said.

As the four stood there, they were surprised to see Jiu suddenly come running up to them. The leader looked ragged, and she was panting heavily. It looked like she had run several miles, and possibly been dragged through hell along the way. Still, she was alive and well, and the four couldn’t help but celebrate the fact that she was okay. They all squealed and pulled her in for a hug.

“Thank goodness you’re okay! Did you run a marathon after getting here or something?” Gahyeon commented.

“What are all of you doing here? I’ve been having trouble figuring out what’s going on, but you four seem like the real deal. Sua, I thought I had this handled. Did you get everyone else involved?” Jiu questioned once she caught her breath.

“After you disappeared, Yoohyeon went into some kind of coma. It didn’t seem like that was part of your spell, so I gathered the others to help me go after you. I think we need all hands on deck to figure out what’s going on. Siyeon is the only one we’re missing, did you happen to see her?” Sua told her.

Jiu shook her head, “No, I’m sorry. I did see Yoohyeon, though, but I lost her. Based on what you told me, this Yoohyeon must be a part of the nightmare. Something tells me that finding her will bring all of the answers we need. I think she went this way, so I’m gonna keep looking here. Clearly, whatever happened to Yoohyeon is my fault and I need to fix it as soon as possible,” she dictated.

“No need to do it alone. We’re all here and we’ll all help you,” Handong assured her with a smile.

“I want to find Siyeon first, so I’ll go look for her while you guys try to find this dream Yoohyeon,” Sua insisted.

“It seems that you won’t need to look for her after all. Her timing sure is impeccable,” Dami chuckled, pointing to another figure running towards them.

“Jiu, I found you at last! I haven’t done this much cardio in a long time. I feel like I’m gonna die! Oh wow, it looks like everybody’s here. Does this mean Yoohyeon’s okay?” Siyeon expressed as she stumbled upon the others.

“She’s not going to be okay until we stop this nightmare once and for all. I told the others that I saw Yoohyeon here, and I think the Yoohyeon in this place will help us solve this problem. Are you ready to go after her with us?” Jiu told the main vocalist, who grinned and nodded.

Jiu smiled, “I can’t thank you guys enough for coming to help me. I didn’t realize what a big mess I caused, but getting mad at myself isn’t going to save Yoohyeon. Let’s go save my girlfriend, everybody!” she cheered.  
~  
There weren’t many buildings left that the girls hadn’t encountered, so it didn’t take long to narrow down their search. There was only one place left where Yoohyeon could be. It was a tiny, run-down shack of a building. It looked like a squalid, lonely place. No wonder it was where she went in her nightmares. Jiu wasted no time opening the door and racing in. Sure enough, Yoohyeon was there, sitting on an uncomfortable looking bed. The girls noticed a bunch of playing cards floating around her. Jiu’s eyes fell on the one closest to the terrified girl. It was the Joker, the unpredictable wildcard, the outcast of the deck. That was when it hit her what this nightmare was all about, what her girlfriend feared so much.

“Yoohyeonie, it’s me, Jiu. I’m here. I know you’re afraid of pushing us all away and being alone. That’s what it always has been, hasn’t it? That’s why you made this abandoned city, this hopeless, gray place. It was somewhere for you to realize your worst fear of pushing everyone away and being trapped alone forever,” she whispered, walking towards the other girl.

“Stop, don’t come any closer! I don’t trust anyone except myself. I’m meant to be by myself here forever! None of you should have ever come here!” Yoohyeon whimpered, the cards flying wildly around her.

The other girls watched Jiu keep approaching her girlfriend, unfazed by her behavior. Jiu reached the bed and pulled the other girl into a comforting hug.

“I’m here and I’m real. I’ll always be here for you, whether in your dreams or when we’re awake. Nothing you could do would ever push me away,” she insisted as she pressed her lips to the younger’s ear.

Yoohyeon began to cry, “How can you say that? I don’t deserve anybody. I’m just a burden who pushes everyone away. Eventually, even you will leave. I hope you do, you deserve better than this,” she whimpered through her tears.

The other girls watched with sad expressions. Jiu held onto her girlfriend and refused to let go. She had to do something to end this nightmare, this terrible loneliness Yoohyeon had been bearing for so many nights. She needed to rescue Yoohyeon from this hell she was trapped in, the situation she had made worse by interfering. Jiu had to do something to make this right.

“I refuse to ever leave you, Yoohyeon. None of us want to see you hurt like this. What can we do to end this? I’m so sorry you’ve been going through this for all this time. I just want you to be able to sleep peacefully at night and not live in fear like this,” Jiu wept, mixing tears with her girlfriend as they clung to each other.

“What if we give you a way to know you’re not alone? A token of our visit, and a way for you to come back to us when the loneliness scares you?” Dami spoke up, walking over to the couple.

Yoohyeon wiped at her eyes, “What do you mean?” she asked.

Dami presented the book, “This book was in another room. I’m glad I grabbed it, because it proves that someone else has been here and rearranged this place. Now you’ll have this book to remind you that we will always love you and will be here when you wake up,” she promised as she placed it in Yoohyeon’s hand.

Jiu smiled through her tears and pulled out a poppy flower she had picked while in the outskirts of the city. She placed it in the book as a special mark.

“There, now there’s even more evidence that someone else has visited your dreams. Hopefully with this, now your nightmares can finally be put to rest,” she told Yoohyeon as she caressed her cheek.

Yoohyeon wiped her tears and held the book close to her chest. Embracing it tightly, she squeezed her eyes shut and a smile crossed her face. Even if the book was somewhat scary-looking, it was comforting to hold a piece of her friends close to her. She valued them more than she could ever express, and now they had proven their dedication to her. This was a tangible way for her to hold onto them, even when taken away from them in slumber. Now she would have a way to remember that they would all still be there when she woke up. Everyone smiled, relieved to see Yoohyeon look so happy for the first time in a while. With this, a bright light filled the room and suddenly everyone found themselves back in Yoohyeon and Sua’s room.

“It looks like whatever we just did worked,” Handong murmured, smiling at Yoohyeon who was fast asleep in her bed.

Dreamcatcher’s lead vocalist wore a content expression, her chest gently rising and falling as she snored quietly. The other six members were relieved to see that she was peacefully sleeping, and it seemed her nightmares were no longer bothering her. Now it was time for all of them to join her and get some shut-eye themselves. Everyone bid each other good night and headed for their rooms. Sua had gone off with Dami and Siyeon, offering her bed to the leader so that she could spend the night watching over her girlfriend. Jiu remained standing for a bit longer, transfixed by how angelic Yoohyeon looked when resting. She had missed seeing her girlfriend sleep peacefully like this without being coddled by her. Jiu yawned and suddenly realized how tired she was. She climbed into bed, ready for sweet dreams to fill her head. She wondered if she and Yoohyeon would meet again in their dreams. Regardless of whether they did or not, she would always be by her side when she woke up.


	13. Double Double Toil and Trouble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I updated both my fics in one day wowza :O Happy Halloweekend Somnies!!! This chapter was inspired by Halloweentown aka a cinematic MASTERPIECE everybody say thank you Disney!! I really wanna make a drinking game for this fic aka take a shot every time there's a group hug, a witch joke, or Siyeon does something stupid ghghh (chapter title comes from the famous Shakespeare line bc I wanted something Halloweenie and witchy mmkay)

October had finally fallen: the season of autumn leaves, pumpkin patches, and scary stories. This was also the month of Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist’s birthday. Siyeon had every reason to be excited about Halloween as an October baby and a member of one of the scariest groups in kpop. After all, people often compared Dreamcatcher’s nightmare concepts to witches, ghosts, vampires, and any other ghoulish creatures their minds could render up. Little did they know that the witch comparison hit a little too close on the nose.

Siyeon was bursting with excitement. Her birthday had already been a blast, and now the other most exciting thing about October had finally arrived! This Halloween was sure to be special. She had convinced the manager to schedule a Halloween fanmeet on the holiday rather than stick the girls in some boring interview or photoshoot. The main vocalist had insisted that she wanted to decorate the event space in honor of the Halloween spirit. Siyeon’s energy was palpable. She was overflowing with excitement like a giddy child on Christmas morning, except that it was Halloween afternoon. She smiled as she strung lights shaped like pumpkins along the ceiling, hovering above the ghost stickers she had already placed upon the walls. Her eyes shifted to the surprise she had hidden in the corner, where hopefully no one would find it until it was time for it to be revealed. It took all of her willpower not to give away what she was planning for tonight. She wanted to make it a Halloween the fans and her members would never forget.

Just then, the six remaining members of Dreamcatcher appeared The other girls admired her handiwork as they entered the freshly decorated space. They had insisted on getting to see the room before the fans arrived. Siyeon beamed with pride as they admired her decorative skills. Every visible space in the room had some kind of pumpkin, ghost, vampire bat, or fake spider web on it. Orange, black, and purple lights transformed the room into a spooky wonderland. It looked like the perfect place to host a fanmeet. Sua ran over to her girlfriend and gave her a congratulatory hug.

“Wow, Siyeon, the room looks fantastic! Leave it to the queen of October to throw an awesome Halloween party. Everyone’s gonna love it!” she praised.

“The room seriously looks amazing. You outdid yourself!” Gahyeon agreed, playing with a stuffed black cat she saw resting on the table.

Jiu giggled as she put on a fake witch’s hat lying on her seat, “This is so much fun! What a great thing you’re doing for the fans. I had my doubts when I saw how hard you were fighting for a fanmeet on Halloween, but this seems harmless,” she observed.

“I gotta admit, I thought the fanmeet for Halloween was a weird idea too, but this is really cool,” Yoohyeon admired.

Handong nodded, “You can’t blame us for being a little worried whenever you have an idea, Siyeon, but this one seems like it’ll go well,” she added.

Siyeon grinned, “I’m glad you guys like it. I have another surprise planned for the end of the party. Don’t try to ask me what it is, because I’ll never tell!” she declared triumphantly.

Dami eyed her skeptically, “You’re not going to use the cover of Halloween to reveal your powers in some dramatic magic show, are you?” she worried.

Siyeon shook her head, “I’m hurt that you think so little of me. My surprise is way cooler and much more creative than that. You’ll just have to wait and see. Come on everybody, let’s get lined up before the fans get here!” she decided, ushering the girls offstage with one last glance at her hidden treat for tonight.  
~  
The fanmeet was going better than Siyeon could ever have imagined. She was on cloud nine watching how much fun the fans were having. The other members were not exempt from the fun either. Siyeon melted at the sight of Handong and Gahyeon in matching cat ears giggling with each other. Jiu had been having a blast with the pink witch hat, though she was still careful not to expose her true identity. Yoohyeon and Dami had been joking around with the fake vampire teeth, pretending to bite each other and then treating them like a pair of dentures. Siyeon’s favorite part was having Sua by her side. Her girlfriend looked adorable in the pumpkin headband she had put on and Siyeon couldn’t help but want to hold her close. 

The barrage of flashing fansite cameras that had not stopped since the event started. Siyeon was sure the smile on her face remained for every single picture. Nothing could tear down her mood with the event having gone so well. She decided now was the perfect time to unveil her surprise since things were wrapping up. She would be able to end things on a high. She raced backstage to grab the black treasure chest she had stowed away. Inside was an array of masks she had found at a nearby costume store. Siyeon ran back onstage and displayed the box for everyone with a dramatic flourish.

“Hello, everyone! I hope you have enjoyed today’s event. Before we say our goodbyes and have to leave each other, I wanted to give you all some last minute Halloween fun. As you see here, I have masks for all of you. If everyone could pass them out and put them on, we can commence the grand finale!” she proposed, captivating everyone with her tone of voice and mystical gestures.

The members exchanged looks. Given Siyeon’s track record, they tended to worry whenever she had a surprise for them. They never knew what tricks were hiding beneath the girl’s often baggy sleeves. Still, they didn’t want to spoil anyone’s fun and stepped up to help Siyeon distribute the masks to the audience members, including the staff. Once everyone else had their masks, the members took the remaining ones left and put them on. Siyeon was the only one not wearing hers, since she wanted everyone’s attention on her for what she was about to do. She held her mask in one hand, and raised the other to the sky.

“Alright, everyone has their masks on, right? Very well, let’s get this show on the road! Happy Halloween!” she proclaimed before drawing forth her magic.

A blue spark flew from Siyeon’s hand and flashed throughout the room. It was as if lightning had struck. Siyeon grinned as her plan took effect. She had read about a special spell that made Halloween costumes come to life and had been itching to try it out. She was thrilled that everything had gone her way, from the manager agreeing to her fanmeet idea to everyone cooperating and putting on their masks. She was excited to see what happened before putting on her own mask and enjoying the magic herself. The flashing light dissipated, and Siyeon made sure to look out at everyone around her so that she could admire her work. What she saw made her recoil in fright and drop her mask.

“What have I done?” she whispered.

The audience burst into a cacophony of monstrous groans and shrieks. None of them looked remotely human anymore. Siyeon recognized a fan who had been given a skeleton mask who now resembled a walking tower of bones. Beside him was a fan who had been given a snake mask and was now an awful-looking reptilian hybrid creature. Siyeon’s eyes darted to where her members were sitting behind her. Her throat clenched at the sight of the horrible creatures they had become. Dami had been wearing a bear mask and was now a giant fuzzy beast that looked hungry. Yoohyeon’s Frankenstein mask had turned her into a giant monster like the one from the series. Jiu was now a terrifying clown, Handong an alien-like creature, and Gahyeon had become a snarling werewolf. Siyeon’s gaze finally landed on Sua who had been turned into a hideous old crone. She drew in a shaky breath and realized she was alone and completely defenseless.

“It looks like I really screwed up. How do I fix this?” she muttered to herself as she looked around the room.

She quickly came to the sickening realization that these were no longer the people she loved, but an army of ghouls and monsters from the scary stories society feared. She could sense that she was in danger as the only human in the room. Sure enough, they had all begun advancing towards her. Siyeon screamed and tore off when a group of them lunged for her. She ran as fast as her legs would take her and headed for the backstage exit. She needed to get out of there and find the spellbook they kept in the dorm. Hopefully there would be something in there about how to change an army of people you turned into hideous monsters back to normal. The fanmeet had been held in another town, so running there was out of the question. She would have to find some form of transportation. Siyeon opened the door and raced outside, scanning the parking lot for a car she could use. The manager had the keys to their vehicle and was currently a giant insect, so that was out of the question. She could feel the crowd gaining on her, and knew she needed to act fast. She spotted a bicycle that was thankfully not chained to anything. She made a mental note to have Happyface reimburse whichever fan it belonged to. She sprinted towards it and hopped on, pedaling as fast as she could. The mob of monsters followed her on foot, or claw, or talon, or whatever they currently had.  
Siyeon tore down the street, hoping she was headed in the right direction. She hadn’t been paying much attention on the way to the fanmeet because she had been so preoccupied with her plans. What a fat lot of good that had done her. She wished she could go back in time and smack herself upside the head for being such a fool. Now her members, her staff, and several of the fans she loved were chasing her in a revolting mob trying to kill her. She was glad that the roads weren’t crowded or else other people might become targets. She doubted that the monsters chasing her really cared whose flesh they got to eat. Siyeon’s eyes frantically scanned the signs along the way, looking for any street names or buildings she recognized. A sigh of relief came when she saw the street the dorm was on up ahead. Her legs felt like jelly, but she knew she needed to keep pedaling if she wanted to live and have a chance at turning everyone back to normal. 

Finally, she reached the dorm and was able to ditch the bike. Somehow she found enough strength in her legs to race towards the front door on foot. Siyeon scrambled to find her keys in her bag, mentally cursing herself for not being more organized. Her horrifying friends were not far behind her, and were already encroaching the front of the property. She salvaged her keys and raced to open the door right as the mob drew nearer. She shrieked and slammed the door shut on one of the monster’s hands, locking the deadbolt. Siyeon dropped to the ground, clutching her heart. She could hear pounding noises outside. A crowd that size would be able to break their way in eventually. She needed to hurry. Siyeon hoisted herself up from the floor and sped towards the room where they kept the book.

Siyeon yanked the spellbook from its usual spot in the shelf, and began to frantically flip through its contents. She scanned each page at a record speed while silently praying that she would find a reversal spell soon. Siyeon winced when she heard a crashing noise from nearby. The monsters must have knocked the front door down. They clearly weren’t civilized enough to use their keys. She wondered if she would liable to pay for the damages, since this was sort of her fault. She would make sure to add that to her tab, along with the bike she borrowed.

‘Focus, Siyeon! Now is not the time or place for any distractions!’ she mentally scolded herself.

Siyeon was reading as fast as she could, but the mob had made their way into the dorms and she could hear the floor creak with every step they took. Her heart began to race as she felt them drawing nearer. She knew she would have to act fast or else she would be a sitting duck. She wondered if monsters would be able to detect an invisibility spell? It seemed like her best option. Either that or teleportation, but that only worked a fraction of the time. Knowing her luck, she would end up teleporting into the waiting arms of one of the creatures trying to kill her. Siyeon snapped her fingers and felt herself vanish from plain sight just as the mob burst into the room. She sighed in relief as they looked around cluelessly, clearly unable to sense her presence.

“That was close,” she muttered.

Unfortunately, Siyeon did not realize that Dami’s new bear identity came with enhanced hearing. Her furry ears perked up at the sound of Siyeon’s voice, and she lunged at her with a low growl. Siyeon shrieked and managed to roll out of the way just in time. Now she’d done it. Her invisibility spell wore off with the sudden movement, and the loud noise alerted the other monsters to her whereabouts. She was screwed. Siyeon stood frozen in place as the mob headed towards her. What was she going to do? Out of the corner of her eye, Siyeon noticed that the window behind her was open. If she remembered correctly, the gutter pipe was right near it. She could use that to climb to the roof. It was not the most ideal spot to escape to, but seeing as the mob was blocking all other exits, it was her only option. Letting out a battle cry, Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist scurried out the window and clambered up the pipe. She had to rely on the strength of her dominant arm, since the other one held onto the spellbook. Once she had managed to get up to the roof, she laid down on it and put her head in her hands.

“What am I going to do?” she despaired.

Just then, a howl was heard. Siyeon’s head jerked towards the sound. It turned out the werewolf of the group had chosen to hang out on the roof for a moonlight viewing. Siyeon groaned as she realized she had escaped only to find herself once again in immediate danger. Running for her life wasn’t exactly the smartest option, considering how small the roof was. Slipping and falling wouldn’t be fatal, but it could cause an injury that would leave her unable to fight or flee. Then she might as well be dead. Siyeon hoped she would be able to play her cards right and handle this situation smoothly.

Snarling and baring its teeth, the werewolf came at her, and Siyeon put up her hands in defense. She screamed as its sharp claws tore into her arm. It did not take long for blood to ooze from the injury. Siyeon had to think fast, or this beast would tear her apart. Its friends couldn’t be too far away either. They wouldn’t take long for them to find their way to the roof and help finish the job. Siyeon fought as hard as she could. She grabbed at the werewolf’s face, punching and scratching. She was surprised when her hands felt an abnormality near its chin. Sure, being a werewolf was an abnormality in general, but this felt like some kind of fold that could be yanked at. Siyeon did just that, and was surprised when she pulled off the werewolf mask that had been worn by Gahyeon. As she did, the werewolf reverted back into the form of Dreamcatcher’s youngest, who looked dazed and confused.

“What, where am I? How did I end up outside? Weren’t we just at a fanmeet?” Gahyeon wondered as she scrutinized her surroundings.

Gahyeon gasped when she noticed Siyeon’s bleeding arm, and the fact that she was straddling her, and that they were on a roof. She looked at the older girl, clearly expecting an explanation. Siyeon chuckled nervously.

“Gahyeonie, you’re back! You know, you’re much cuter when you aren’t a werewolf trying to kill me,” the main vocalist told her.

Gahyeon’s eyes widened, “A werewolf? Does this have something to do with those masks you gave everybody at the fanmeet? That’s the last thing I remember. Next thing I know, I’m with you on the roof and-what the heck are those?” she erupted into shrieks of terror when she looked down and saw the rest of the monsters, who had made their way to the front yard of the dorm.

“Ah, yes, those would be the rest of the people at the fanmeet. I tried to make Halloween more exciting by casting a spell that brings costumes to life, but what I got instead was a hoard of monsters chasing me. I know we have a song about being chased, but in real life it’s a lot less exciting, and much more terrifying. Anyways, it looks like ripping the masks off will turn them all back to normal. That’s what I did to you. Are you up for helping me fix this?” Siyeon informed her as she glanced at the army of beasts.

Gahyeon groaned at this information and put her hands to the sky.

“Why can’t we ever just have a normal day for once? Ugh, you know I’ll help you, but I’m mad at you for causing trouble. We should do something about your arm first, though. Those scratches look pretty bad, and they’re bleeding a lot,” she pointed out, returning her attention to Siyeon.

Gahyeon quickly cast a healing spell, and Siyeon’s arm was back to normal. The main vocalist grinned and kissed her on the cheek as thanks. Gahyeon couldn’t help but smile at the gesture. She got up and offered her hand to Siyeon, who accepted it and let her help her up.

“Now then, let’s go kick some ass!” Siyeon cheered, grabbing Gahyeon’s waist and jumping off the roof.

Gahyeon screamed as they descended towards the eagerly awaiting crowd, only for Siyeon to let out a burst of magic at the last second. The two girls flew over the monsters and landed safely nearby.

“Please don’t ever do that to me again,” Gahyeon panted as she clutched her chest.

Siyeon giggled, “You’re fine! Come on, let’s save the others! We should probably look for the members first, since this will be a lot harder to explain to our fans. If I remember correctly, these are their current forms: Handong is the alien, Jiu is the clown, Yoohyeon is Frankenstein, Dami is a bear, and Sua is an old hag,” she listed.

“She sure is,” Gahyeon mumbled under her breath about Sua, “Sounds good. Let’s split up and search for them so it’s quicker. At least we know who to look for. Be careful out there!” she warned before heading in one direction, leaving Siyeon to go the other way.  
~  
Gahyeon shrieked as she dodged monsters coming at her from both sides. She hoped she wouldn’t have to resort to using violence on anyone, but if they were gonna try keep trying to kill her, she might have to. As she was running, she searched for any monsters matching the descriptions of the members. Her face lit up when she saw the alien Siyeon was talking about. That was Handong! Gahyeon raced towards her girlfriend, eager to save her. She was so focused on getting to Handong that she didn’t notice the slime monster attacking until it had pinned her to the ground. She groaned at the impact and the stickiness of the goo holding her down.

“Ew, it feels like I’m under a giant booger! Who even are you?” she whined.

She knew that her best chance of escaping was to pull off the mask and turn this person back to normal. She wasn’t sure there was much else she could do without risking someone getting hurt. They were going to have to cast a memory loss spell on their fans after tonight anyways, so there was no harm in some of them turning back to normal before others. She would make sure to get whoever this was to a safe place away from the monsters. Gahyeon took off the mask to reveal a sniveling young boy, and quickly helped him up.

“Where am I? What happened? Wait a minute, you’re Gahyeon! Wow, to be this close to you in person, am I dreaming?” he gaped.

Gahyeon smiled, “Yeah, yeah, I know. This is all very exciting. Listen, now is really not the time or place for fanboying. I need you to go stand at that tree over there, and whatever you do, do not move. Also, close your eyes when you get there,” she ordered.

“Anything for you, Gahyeon!” he declared, before doing as he was told.

When Gahyeon was sure he had closed his eyes, she zapped him with an invisible shield. Now none of the monsters would be able to get him, and he would stay trapped in her barrier until they could cast the forgetfulness spell. Dreamcatcher’s youngest dusted off her shoulders, clearly impressed with herself. Now then, back to business. Gahyeon was much more careful this time, and used magic to launch herself to where Handong was. While airborne, she grabbed Handong’s mask and ripped it off, landing gracefully. She hugged her girlfriend, relieved to see her back to normal.

“Gahyeon, what’s going on? How’d we get back to the dorms? Weren’t we just at the fanmeet?” the Chinese girl inquired, tilting her head.

“You can thank Siyeon for everything happening right now. She cast a spell that turned everybody into monsters using those masks she gave us. She ripped my mask off, which turned me back to normal,and then I did the same to you. We’re trying to find all of the members so we can fix this together,” the younger girl informed her.

Handong nodded, “I see. Why don’t we go look for them together? Do you know what all of them look like?” she suggested.  
“Siyeon told me. We’re looking for a clown, a bear, Frankenstein, and an old lady. Let’s do this!” Gahyeon cheered before taking Handong’s hand and racing off in search of the others.  
~  
Meanwhile, Siyeon had decided to go back inside the dorm. There were a good amount of creatures in there. Siyeon’s eyes zeroed in on the giant bear looming over most of the others. Bingo, there was Dami! Siyeon focused on her target and made a break for it, letting out a mighty battlecry. The monsters turned their heads just as she was racing in, giving her enough time to jump on bear Dami’s back and yank the mask off her face. The real Dami stood, puzzled, in the place where the bear had just been.

“How did I get into our kitchen?” she pondered.

Her eyes narrowed when she noticed Siyeon standing beside her. The main vocalist was holding her bear mask with a guilty expression, and there was an army of monsters everywhere.

“Ah, that explains a lot. So whatever this is, it’s all your fault,” she deduced.

Siyeon grimaced, “Wow, nothing gets past you, does it? Your powers of deduction never cease to amaze me-”

Dami cut her off, “Enough sucking up. How do we go about fixing everyone?” she demanded.

“We have to rip their masks off. Basically just grab at their faces, and that’ll get the job done. Gahyeonie was the first person I fixed. She’s outside looking for the other members. We figured we’d turn you guys back to normal first, then worry about the fans and staff later. Wanna help me look for them?” Siyeon offered.

Dami nodded, “Sure thing, just tell me what creatures I’m looking out for. The sooner we get everybody back to normal, the sooner you can fill us in on what the hell happened, and we can decide what to do with you,” she said.

Siyeon gulped. The only thing scarier than an army of ghouls and goblins was the wrath of her members. She was hesitant to find the others now, but she still took off in search of them. Dami was hot on her heels the whole way, definitely keeping an eye on her.  
~  
Gahyeon and Handong had found a hiding place behind a cluster of bushes, and were currently scoping the scene in front of them. Several monsters had passed their visual field, but none of them matched the description of what the members now looked like. Gahyeon was growing impatient, but knew that the element of surprise was their best option. Charging out without a plan might put them in danger or force them to revert more fans back to normal, like that one guy. She wasn’t interested in using too much of her magical energy to trap people in force fields. The duo was so focused on searching the areas in front of them, that they were stunned when they heard a rustling from a nearby bush. Suddenly, a clown popped out, laughing maniacally. Both girls screamed and clung to each other in fear. They quickly took a battle stance, both of them ready to fight.

“Isn’t that what you said Jiu is now? A clown?” Handong asked Gahyeon who nodded.

“Personally, I think that look would suit Siyeon better, who got all of us into this mess. Either way, we’ve gotta get that mask off of her,” the younger girl stated.

“Alright, we can’t make any sudden movements or else it’ll give her an opportunity to attack. I’ll distract her, and when the coast is clear you can rip off her mask,” Handong decided.

Gahyeon nodded and stood still while Handong inched towards the clown creature. With impeccable timing, Handong darted to one side, prompting Jiu to follow her. Gahyeon took that opportunity to come at her from the other side, and grab her face. Once the mask was off, Gahyeon winced at its creepiness and dropped it on the ground immediately. Jiu fell into Handong’s arms, thrown off by the sudden change. She looked around with wide eyes, clearly confused.

“Where are we? Last thing I remember, we were at the Halloween fanmeet and Siyeon was showing us some kind of surprise,” she recalled before slapping her palm to her forehead and groaning, “Siyeon caused some kind of disaster, didn’t she?”

“As expected of our leader, you sure do figure things out quickly. Siyeon accidentally turned everybody into monsters using those masks she bought. Anyways, we’re trying to get all of the members back to normal before we fix everybody else. Wanna help us look for them? As far as I know, us and Siyeon are the only ones that aren’t monsters. Siyeon and I split up to look for you guys, hopefully she’s okay,” Gahyeon explained.

“We should probably go look for her then. It’ll be easier to fix everyone if we all work together. Gahyeon, you lead the way since you seem to know what’s going on,” Jiu ordered.

Gahyeon did as she was told and headed in the direction of the dorm where Siyeon had gone. Handong and Jiu followed her with their magic at the ready in case anyone (or anything) attacked.

As soon as they got inside, they heard two voices yelling simultaneously. They recognized the voices as belonging to Siyeon and Dami. The trio raced in the direction the sounds came from, dodging any monsters they passed.They arrived in the kitchen, where the main rapper and main vocalist were sitting on top of the fridge, armed with a variety of utensils. The two girls were using whatever they could to beat back the invading mob trying to kill them.

“Oh wow, it looks like Yoohyeon and Sua are the only ones left to fix,” Dami observed when she saw that Gahyeon, Jiu, and Handong were all human once again.

“Good job, Gahyeonie! You got Jiu and Handong back to normal all on your own. Now, would you guys mind giving us a bit of help here?” Siyeon called.

“Don’t worry, I’ll save you guys!” Jiu told them.

“I’m sorry for what I’m about to do,” the leader said to the monsters before blasting them with a burst of magic that dispersed them all over the room.

Dami and Siyeon cheered and jumped down from the fridge. The five girls gathered together, ready to look for the final two members. There was no sign of an old hag or Frankenstein nearby, so five of them decided to split up to search the bedrooms. Jiu and Dami took their shared room with Siyeon, Gahyeon and Handong took their own room, and Siyeon agreed to search Sua and Yoohyeon’s room.  
~  
Dami raised an eyebrow as she watched Jiu crouch on the floor, peeling up her covers so she could search under the bed.

“Uh, why are you looking there? That’d be a pretty tight squeeze for most of these guys,” she pointed out.

Jiu blushed, “Well, in movies and stuff, monsters always hide under the bed. I thought maybe this would be like that,” she explained.

While the leader was busy testing her theory, a shadowy figure loomed behind Dami. The main rapper turned her head just in time to be grabbed from the back and pulled into a bear hug. Dami screamed and thrashed around, trying to escape the grip of whatever was holding her. Jiu jumped at the noise, and whipped her head around to see what was going on. She recognized the arms around Dami as belonging to the Frankenstein monster, which meant it was Yoohyeon. Jiu smiled at their luck-she had come right to them! The older girl wasted no time racing to save her friend, and turn her girlfriend back into a human. She ripped the mask from Yoohyeon’s face with all of her might, sending the tall girl crashing to the ground with Dami on top of her. The lead vocalist let out a cry of pain.

“Oh gosh, are you okay? Sorry for the rude awakening, but I had to act fast,” Jiu fussed, helping Dami up before bending down to check on her girlfriend.

“What happened? Actually, don’t answer that. I know Siyeon was somehow involved, so it can’t be good,” the tallest member moaned.

Dami and Jiu smirked at each other. It was amazing how quickly everyone was able to associate Siyeon with chaos. The two girls each offered a hand to Yoohyeon, who gratefully accepted them. Once they got her to her feet, the trio decided to check on how the others were doing. The only one left was Sua, so hopefully someone else had found her. Siyeon’s shrieking alerted them that it was probably her. They rushed into Yoohyeon’s shared room with Sua, catching up with Gahyeon and Handong in the process. The five stood in the doorway, surprised to see Siyeon the ground with a hideous old woman sitting on her chest.

“You know, normally I’d love this, but right now I am seriously not in the mood!” Siyeon protested, flailing her arms wildly in an effort to grab at her girlfriend’s face.

“Wow, now I feel kind of bad for teasing you guys about being old,” Yoohyeon told Minji who winced at the comment.

Dami marched over to the couple, and easily slid Sua’s mask off her face. The main dancer blinked, assessing the situation. She looked down at the girl she was currently straddling, who wiggled her eyebrows.

“Hi there,” Siyeon flirted.

“Why do I feel like whatever happened is your fault?” Sua glared at her girlfriend.

“Because it is. This genius over here cast a spell that made everybody at the fanmeet a walking Halloween costume,” Dami supplied.

“But at least we all had fun! And now all of us are ourselves again and we can fix our fans and cast a spell that makes them forget this ever happened!” Siyeon cheered, trying to lighten the mood.

If looks could kill, Siyeon would have died six times. The main vocal immediately shut up, not wanting to make things any worse for herself. She knew she was in for a terrible punishment once they fixed everything. At least for now she was safe, since they needed to focus on getting everybody else back to normal. The girls decided to spread out throughout the dorm, making sure to surround the monsters. They cast two spells, the first was a pulse of energy that would knock off the remaining masks, and the other wiped everyone’s memories of everything after the fanmeet. Last but not least, they teamed up to teleport everyone back to the event space. Much to their relief, people went about their business, assuming the fanmeet had gone normally and it was time to head home.  
~  
When Dreamcatcher arrived back at their dorm for real this time, Siyeon bolted for her room. Unfortunately, she was not fast enough, and Dami used a spell to bind her hands and feet. The main vocalist fell to the floor with a loud grunt. She looked up fearfully at the six members hovering over her, all of them with sinister smiles on their faces. Siyeon tried to act cute in hopes that they would free her, but she knew nothing could save her now.

“Did you really think we’d let you get away with this? You turned us all into hideous monsters and expected us to just turn the other cheek? Nope, you are going to own up to what you did. Now then, Siyeon, are you ready for your punishment?” Jiu smirked.

If anyone walked by Dreamcatcher’s dorms that night and heard Siyeon’s screams, they would probably think Halloween fun was happening inside. What happened that night was a mystery, but whatever it was, Siyeon was ready to be done with Halloween for a long time. She had realized that her members were scarier than anything that holiday could produce. She didn’t need monster masks to be scarred for life, the wrath of six witches was much more effective.


	14. Pied Piper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m bringing back this fic from the dead!!! Maybe I’ll go back to writing chapters of this from time to time. I have a Jibo planned for after I finish my 2yoo fic, but I will try to keep this one in the mix. Anyways, this chapter is in celebration of Gahyeon getting lines and Dreamcatcher hopefully getting their well deserved first win! This is basically my interpretation of the MV but I gave it a happy ending because positive vibez yo. I whipped this up as quickly as I could because Piri is ICONIC!! (Sidenote: it’s so weird to be calling everyone by their stage names again.)

Yoohyeon held up the bizarre instrument with intrigue. She should have known better than to use the same black market that led to Siyeon losing her voice, but she couldn’t resist the pitfalls of the Internet. She had been browsing all night when she stumbled upon a forum discussing magical instruments. With all of the band exploring new musical endeavors, she thought it might be cool to add magic into the mix. After all, they’d been working so hard, and it was time they made things easier on themselves.

All of the other members were busy doing their own thing in the dorm. Yoohyeon sat all by herself in the room, eager to surprise them with her new discovery. She decided to test it out by herself before showing the others.

Yoohyeon held the flute-like object close, ready to blow into it, when suddenly a noise erupted from inside of it. Everything went black for the lead vocalist. She was no longer in control of her body. The spirit possessing Yoohyeon smiled, letting the flute drop to the ground. Suddenly the entire dormitory was being coated with a black, ink-like substance. They were all being written into the nightmare.  
~  
Siyeon gasped, startled into consciousness. She looked around with a confused expression. Last she remembered, she had been practicing her vocals for the upcoming comeback. The place she was in now looked nothing like the dormitory. It was cold, dark, and devoid of any signs of life. The silence was so stifling it echoed around the walls and made Siyeon feel trapped. She began to run, hoping it would get her out of this place or at the very least lead her to the other members.

Siyeon kept running but only found herself going in circles. She found herself in the same place every time, no matter how long she kept moving her feet. The main vocalist found herself falling into despair. She was about to scream at the top of her lungs for help when she saw someone approaching her. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized it was Yoohyeon.

“Yoohyeon, I’m so glad you’re here! Do you have any idea what happened? I was just about to nail the high note, then all of a sudden I’m in this weird maze thing. I know fans like to joke about my high notes sending them to another dimension, but I don’t think that’s how it actually works!” Siyeon chuckled, ready to embrace her friend.

The main vocalist froze. There was something weird about Yoohyeon. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but her instincts told her to stay back all the same. Siyeon slowly began to back away when she saw Yoohyeon coming closer to her. The taller girl wore a menacing expression that looked nothing like the girl’s usual sweet demeanor. Yoohyeon looked as if she was enjoying the terror in Siyeon’s face. She wasn’t acting like herself at all. Whatever had sent them here must have gotten to her.

Siyeon took off running. She had to try and find the others. Maybe they could help her figure out what was wrong with Yoohyeon. At the very least, she needed to know if they were all okay. She hoped they weren’t all possessed like the lead vocalist clearly was. Siyeon raced off with determination, forgetting all of her previous failures to escape the maze. This time her efforts seemed to work and she was delving deeper into this strange new world.  
~  
Handong glanced around nervously, startled by the sudden change in her surroundings. Where was Gahyeon? The two of them had been giggling at funny videos in their room before darkness suddenly engulfed everything. She hoped her girlfriend was okay. Handong searched for her relentlessly, softly calling her name.

Before she knew it, Handong found herself in a bizarre room. The wall was covered in clocks. Dreamcatcher’s Chinese member tilted her head, examining the various devices scattered around her. This was a mistake. The clocks began to simultaneously tick and chime in a cacophony. Handong grabbed her ears at the sudden noises, finding her sense of time becoming distorted. Everything seemed to be slowing down and blurring into darkness.

Handong knew if she stayed here any longer something bad would happen. She had to do something or else she would be stuck in this dystopia. Gathering all of her strength, Handong ripped the nearest clock from the wall and threw it to the ground, thus breaking the spell she was under and freeing her. She wasted no time running away from that awful place. She needed to find the others.  
~  
Gahyeon was puzzled to say the least. How does a person go from laughing with their girlfriend in their shared bedroom to staring at a wall of assorted telephones? She figured someone had to have cast a spell on the dormitory. How else could she have ended up in this weird place? She wondered if Handong was anywhere nearby. She knew the two of them weren’t the ones who did this, so who was it? Gahyeon just hoped no one had gotten hurt.

Dreamcatcher’s youngest eyed the phones with interest. If they were all here together, then maybe the other members all had phones to use. She figured it was worth a shot to try and reach one of them. Gahyeon picked it up and listened for any voices on the other end. She was about to ask if anyone was there when a hand clamped over her mouth. Gahyeon’s eyes widened as the mysterious figure behind her dragged her into the darkness.  
~  
Jiu wandered through an empty hallway, dazed and disoriented. The only thing on her mind was the whereabouts of her members. The last thing she remembered was eating a snack in the dorm before she woke up in this strange place. She had been alone in the kitchen, and thus had no idea where her members were. She worried that they too had been sucked into this bizarre world and were currently lost like her. She hoped she could find them.

As she was walking along, Jiu came across a television. It was oddly placed considering nothing around it appeared to be built within the last century. Jiu crouched down to examine the unusual device, figuring it had to be important if it was so conspicuously placed. She leaned in closer to examine the screen.

Jiu was surprised to see herself reflected in whatever was playing out on the television. She was sitting next to someone whose face was hidden by a white, lace garment. Jiu immediately knew that person was Yoohyeon. She’d recognize her girlfriend anywhere, even with a veil on her face. Was Yoohyeon trapped here too? Jiu’s heart ached at the thought of her girlfriend being in danger. She found herself overwhelmed with love for the other girl in her desire to protect her. She would do anything for her. Suddenly, when the Jiu on the screen pulled back Yoohyeon’s veil, the two girls’ positions were switched. In that instant, Jiu felt everything fade to black.  
~  
Sua was officially creeped out. Last she’d checked, people didn’t just magically go from their beds to random, freaky places they’d never seen before. She had to believe this was the result of a spell gone wrong, or maybe right. Some of the members were pretty weird. Either way, she was ready to beat the snot out of whoever was responsible for sending her here. She figured the other members must be around as well, and went off in search of them.

Along the way, she came across a grouping of dolls. They were pretty creepy, but Sua found herself drawn to them despite her conscience telling her to run like hell. There was one doll that caught her eye since it was sitting on a chair while the rest were on shelves. She gingerly picked it up, pausing to admire its features. Suddenly the other dolls turned their heads to stare at her. Sua screamed and dropped the doll to the ground before running like mad.  
~  
Dami felt trapped. She was confined in a small space and there seemed to be no exit. She sat down on the ground in order to catch her breath and try to think straight. Last she remembered she’d been reading a book in the dorms, and now she was suddenly thrust into this hellish place. Being the brain of the group, it didn’t take Dami long at all to deduce that this was the result of magic. She speculated over which of her members could have been responsible for what was going on. Her bets were on either Siyeon or Yoohyeon. Those two seemed to be the most disaster prone in the group.

Dami’s musings were interrupted when a hand emerged from the nearby door. She could tell it belonged to one of the members. She slowly approached to see who was there.

“Hello?” she called out, hoping that a friendly face would appear.

As she got closer, the hand reached for her and pulled her by the arm. Yoobin didn’t even have time to react before she was pulled through the door and it shut behind her.  
~  
Siyeon was out of breath from running for so long. She was relieved when she found herself out of the maze and seemingly safe from Yoohyeon. She took a moment to collect herself. She needed to find the others as soon as possible and find a way to save their lead vocalist, who was clearly not herself. Siyeon had a feeling that she was the one who sent them to this creepy place and that she was currently under the control of something evil. Siyeon was determined to save her friends. She just hoped she could reach the others in time.

The room she had stumbled upon was blindingly white. Unlike the darkness of the maze she’d previously been in, this room was filled with light. She also noticed several ladders. Siyeon figured they must lead to other places in this realm. She hoped that she could use them to find the other members. Dreamcatcher’s main vocalist wasted no time clambering up the nearest ladder. As she reached the top, she felt strange. Siyeon sat down on one of the rungs, feeling a strange power overtaking her. She no longer felt in control of herself. Everything starting fading to black.  
~  
All of the members of Dreamcatcher were finally lost to the nightmare. Gahyeon had been the first one to fall into its clutches. After that, it emerged from one of the dolls and overtook Sua. From there, it managed to capture Dami and then took Siyeon as well when she was foolish enough to chase after it. Handong was finally overtaken when a shard of glass from a distorted mirror shattered and she stumbled on its jagged edges. The ultimate fall had been Jiu. She had walked right into its trap because she was so blinded by her feelings for her members, especially Yoohyeon. She was now its host and would be doomed to remain here with the others for all eternity.

Yoohyeon was actually the one who had managed to escape. In her naivety, Jiu had taken the nightmare on but had managed to free Yoohyeon from its control. Yoohyeon found herself alone in an empty room. She wandered around, lost and confused. She didn’t know where she was, but she knew that the flute was behind all of this. Yoohyeon had no idea how she had managed to escape its power, but she had a bad feeling that the members had been caught in the crossfire. If her magic had gotten them into this mess, she hoped it could get them out.

Yoohyeon closed her eyes and sat down on the ground. She wasn’t sure how much time she had. For all she knew, the evil thing inside of the flute might destroy them any second. She had to find her members and destroy whatever was tormenting them. Yoohyeon let the magic wash over her, channeling her feelings for her members. She lured them to her location using as much power as she could invoke. Before long, she heard footsteps approaching.

All of the members had vacant expressions on their faces. It was as if they were lost forever. Yoohyeon strained harder, hoping to use her magic to bring them back to her. She tried to summon all of their memories together in hopes that it would remind them of who they really were. She couldn’t lose her members because of her own foolishness. She should have known better than to trust random magic items from the black market. She prayed for her friends to return to her safely and for all of them to escape this nightmare together. 

Yoohyeon was surprised by the feeling of a hand over hers. Soon another joined it. She looked from side to side, pleased to see her friends surrounding her and supporting her. They still wore the same blank expressions, but from the warmth of their bodies, she could sense that her real friends were still in there despite the nightmare taking over them. She found strength in their embrace and channeled the rest of her magical energy. A warm light filled the room before everything faded to black and dissolved.  
~  
Yoohyeon was laying on the ground unconscious, the flute beside her. The black substance that had leaked everywhere was nowhere in sight. To any passerby, it looked like a normal instrument. In fact, everything seemed to have gone back to normal.

The rest of the members of Dreamcatcher were startled to find themselves exactly where they’d left off. Jiu blinked at the snack in her hands, on the exact same bite as before. Gahyeon and Handong squealed when they saw each other once more, both of them unharmed. Dami gawked at the words on the page of her book, exactly where she’d left off. Sua almost banged her head on Yoohyeon’s top bunk, startled to be back in her room. Siyeon gasped and clutched her chest at the sudden onslaught of music playing from her phone. It was the song she’d been practicing. The six members quickly forgot about whatever they were doing and raced out to find each other.

“Is everyone alright? Please tell me I didn’t just hallucinate the past few hours and that all of you were in some freaky other dimension too,” Sua spoke up when she encountered the others in the hallway.

“You definitely didn’t. Me and Dongie were both there too,” Gahyeon assured her, squeezing her girlfriend’s hand as she said her name.

“I was too. I thought I was gonna die trapped in such a small space,” Dami grimaced.

“You were in a small space? Huh, I was in some kind of maze. Then I found these weird ladders. I guess it wasn’t the same for everyone, was it?” Siyeon mused, scratching her chin.

“Who cares? I’m just glad we’re all safe and out of that spooky place. Does anybody even know how we ended up there anyways?” Sua asked, walking over to rest her head on Siyeon’s shoulder.

Jiu frowned, “Well, one of us is missing, so my money is on Yoohyeon. I hope she made it back safely. Has anybody seen her?” the leader questioned, frantically looking around for any signs of her girlfriend.

All six girls immediately began a dorm-wide manhunt. They had fuzzy memories of everything that happened, but they knew Yoohyeon had to have been there. If she was the one responsible for everything, they hoped it hadn’t caused anything bad to happen to her. The most concerned was Jiu. She couldn’t bear the thought of any harm coming to her girlfriend. She would do anything to protect her.

“I found her! She doesn’t seem to be conscious,” Handong called, standing in the doorway.

Jiu raced past her, terrified for Yoohyeon. She knelt to the ground and leaned over her girlfriend, willing her to open her eyes. The other members congregated behind her, all worried for their beloved friend.

“Do you think she’s gonna be okay?” Gahyeon whispered to Sua, not wanting to upset Jiu any more than she already was.

Sua put a hand on the younger girl’s shoulder. She wished she knew the answer to that question, but everything that had happened in the past few hours defied explanation. Not to mention none of them had a cohesive account of what had taken place. They all experienced different facets of the nightmare realm they were sent to, and everyone’s memories grew hazy once the darkness had captured them. It had to have been Yoohyeon who saved them. She hoped the younger girl hadn’t achieved this by sacrificing herself.

“Yoo, please open your eyes. Don’t do this to us,” Siyeon whimpered, on the verge of tears.

“Maybe I can look in the spellbook and try to find a cure for whatever happened to her,” Dami suggested, already eager to save her same aged friend.

Jiu remained silent, hugging Yoohyeon close to her chest. A single tear trickled down from the leader’s eye and landed on the younger girl’s cheek. Yoohyeon stirred at the strange sensation. Everyone gasped as they saw her face twitch before she slowly began to open her eyes. Yoohyeon’s face lit up when she saw all of her members were okay and they were back in familiar surroundings.

“Everyone made it back okay, what a relief. I’m so sorry,” she whispered, still weak.

Jiu burst into tears of joy and pulled her in for a hug. The other members soon joined in. Siyeon broke away from them when she noticed the flute lying nearby.

“What’s that thing?” she inquired, heading towards it.

“Don’t touch it!” Yoohyeon shrieked, causing the main vocalist to freeze.

“Is that what sent us to that weird place?” Dami deduced.

Yoohyeon nodded, “I got it from the same place where Siyeon got that necklace. I know I shouldn’t have gotten anything from there after what happened, but it just looked so cool. I think its dark powers may have influenced me through my computer,” she confessed.

Despite the stressful situation they had all just endured, the members couldn’t help but burst into laughter at how ridiculous Yoohyeon’s words would have sounded to any rational person. Even Yoohyeon had to join in. That just proved what an unusual life they led as magic users. Thankfully, all of them had made it out of this okay. The seven witches made sure to burn the flute so that no one else could possibly end up in the same predicament they had suffered. They hoped that this would be the end of all of their nightmares. From here on out, they just wanted to keep making sweet dreams and happy memories together.


End file.
